Upcoming AWS Coverage on Sinclair Broadcast Group Post-Earnings Results

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / March 15, 2017 / Active Wall St. announces its post-earnings coverage on TEGNA Inc. (NYSE: TGNA). The Company disclosed its financial results for the fourth quarter fiscal 2016 (Q4 FY16) and full year 2016 (FY16) on February 27, 2017. The media and marketing Company surpassed earnings expectations. Register with us now for your free membership at:

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One of TEGNA's competitors within the Broadcasting - TV space, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.(NASDAQ: SBGI), reported on February 22, 2017, its financial results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2016. AWS will be initiating a research report on Sinclair Broadcast in the coming days.

Today, AWS is promoting its earnings coverage on TGNA; touching on SBGI. Get our free coverage by signing up to:

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Earnings Reviewed

For the three months ended December 31, 2016, TEGNA's total revenues increased 10.2% to $887.42 million compared to Q4 2015 revenue of $805.26 million, driven by revenue growth in both the Media Segment and Digital Segment. The Company's revenue numbers fell short of analysts' consensus of $889.8 million. Total operating revenues for the full year were $3.34 billion, an increase of 9.5 % compared to 2015.

During Q4 2016, TEGNA's reported operating income declined 14.4% on a y-o-y basis to $279.79 million, while on a non-GAAP basis, operating income was 16.6% higher. Operating income totaled $972.1 million for FY16 compared to $913.2 million in FY15. On a non-GAAP basis, operating income was 21.3% higher and totaled $1.03 billion.

For Q4 2016, net income from continuing operations attributable to TEGNA declined 14.6% to $133.12 million compared to Q4 2015 net income of $155.94 million. Special items in Q4 2016 unfavorably impacted GAAP results by $0.13 per share due primarily to non-cash impairments, facility consolidation, severance, and other expenses primarily related to the potential spin-off of Cars.com and strategic review of CareerBuilder. On a non-GAAP basis, the Company's net income from continuing operations attributable to TEGNA surged 40% to $0.74 per diluted share compared to $0.53 per diluted share in the year earlier same quarter, beating Wall Street's expectations of $0.66 per share. For FY16, net income from continuing operations attributable to TEGNA was 54.7% higher.

For Q4 2016, TEGNA's adjusted EBITDA totaled $349.8 million, up 15% on a y-o-y basis. Adjusted EBITDA margin in the reported quarter equaled 39.4%, 1.6% higher than the year earlier quarter. The Company's adjusted EBITDA was $1.23 billion in FY16 compared to $1.05 billion in FY15, up 17.1%. The adjusted EBITDA margin in 2016 was 36.9%, an increase of 2.3% from 34.6% in FY15.

Segment Results

During Q4 2016, TEGNA's Media segment's revenues reached a record $529.1 million, reflecting a 14.5% increase on a y-o-y basis. Excluding the extra days in Q4 2015, Media segment's revenues would have been up 17.3%. The growth was driven by an $80.2 million increase in political advertising and a $25.5 million increase in retransmission revenues. These increases were partially offset by a decline in core advertising due to the displacement effect of political advertising in the quarter. For FY16, Media segment's revenues increased 14.9% compared to FY15 to a record $1.9 billion driven by a $133.4 million increase in political spending, advertising related to the Summer Olympics of $55.9 million, and a 29.7% increase in retransmission revenue. Adjusting for the change to a calendar fiscal year, Media segment's revenues were up approximately 16%.

The Media segment's operating expenses were $292.6 million for Q4 2016 compared to $261.6 million in Q4 2015. The increase was due primarily to higher programming fees and continued investment in growth initiatives. Operating income was $236.5 million, up 17.9% compared to $200.7 million in Q4 2015. On a non-GAAP basis, operating income in the reported quarter soared 17.6% higher and totaled $243.7 million. The segment's adjusted EBITDA was $261.2 million, up 16.4% resulting in an adjusted EBITDA margin of 49.4 % in the quarter.

Based on current trends, TEGNA expects Media segment's revenue in Q1 2017 to be flat to slightly above Q1 2016.

During Q4 2016, TEGNA's Digital segment's revenues rose 4.5 % reflecting $7.4 million in revenue growth at Cars.com and a $10.1 million revenue increase at CareerBuilder offset, in part, by the impact of the sale of the PointRoll business in November 2015. Cars.com revenues sold directly by the Company were up 7.5% driven by the acquisition of DealerRater and an increase in display advertising revenues and higher lead spending by auto manufacturers. Wholesale revenues were 2.5% lower in the quarter compared to Q4 2015.

Digital segment's operating expenses totaled $299.1 million, an increase of 3.5%. The increase reflects primarily the acquisitions of Aurico and Workterra and higher cost of sales in support of revenue growth at CareerBuilder, partially offset by the impact of the disposition of PointRoll. Digital segment's operating income was $59.2 million. Excluding special items, non-GAAP operating income was $69.0 million, an increase of 5.6 % on a y-o-y basis. Adjusted EBITDA totaled $102.7 million resulting in an adjusted EBITDA margin of 28.7%.

Cash Flows

TEGNA's cash flow from operating activities for Q4 2016 was $228.7 million. Free cash totaled $202.4 million for the quarter. Long-term debt outstanding was $4.0 billion and total cash was $76.9 million at the end of the quarter. During the quarter, TEGNA repurchased 497,621 shares of its outstanding stock for $11.0 million. Dividends paid in the quarter totaled $30.0 million.

TEGNA's Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.14 per share, payable on April 03, 2017, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on March 10, 2017.

Stock Performance

On Tuesday, March 14, 2017, the stock closed the trading session at $26.01, slightly down 0.19% from its previous closing price of $26.06. A total volume of 1.24 million shares have exchanged hands. TEGNA's stock price rallied 10.53% in the last month, 13.06% in the past three months, and 21.94% in the previous six months. Furthermore, since the start of the year, shares of the Company have surged 22.26%. The stock is trading at a PE ratio of 12.83 and has a dividend yield of 2.15%.

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SOURCE: Active Wall Street