Sinclair Inc. Q2 Results Slip As Company Touts Reorganization As A Way Of “Unlocking Hidden Value”

Dade Hayes
·2 min read

Sinclair Inc. reported an 8% year-over-year drop in total revenue to $768 million in the second quarter as losses widened and the company declared a newly intensified focus on unlocking “hidden value.”

Formerly known as Sinclair Broadcast Group, the company also highlighted its recent rebrand and reorganization into two operating units. One is dedicated to local broadcasting and the other, Sinclair Ventures, consists of non-local media holdings like the Tennis Channel.

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CEO Chris Ripley said the new structure would help revive the company’s prospects, while also providing greater transparency and strategic maneuverability. Sinclair’s battered stock has recently traded near 10-year lows, shaving billions off the company’s market value, which is now just $850 million.

Advertising revenue in the quarter ending June 30 slumped 16% from a year ago to $309 million. Core ad revenue, which excludes political, fell 3%. Losses increased to $1.38 per share on a diluted basis, compared with 17 cents in the year-earlier period.

During a conference call with Wall Street analysts to discuss the results, Ripley was asked about what steps the company might consider as a way of “unlocking hidden value” in the company. “We are open to any and all strategies to maximize value,” he said. “That is our No. 1 goal here. We think this new structure will help tremendously, but we’re open to new suggestions and new ideas and we’re always willing to get better.”

Long a power in the local TV station sector, Sinclair had proposed an acquisition for Tribune Media in 2017 but the deal fell through a year later in large part due to objections by federal regulators. Rival Nexstar Media Group swooped in to buy Tribune in 2019 and leapfrog Sinclair as the No. 1 owner of local stations in the U.S.

After losing out on Tribune, Sinclair then led the pricey acquisition of the two dozen regional sports networks run by 21st Century Fox before most of the company was bought by Disney. Eventually rebranded under the Bally Sports name, the networks are majority-owned by Sinclair and operated by a subsidiary called Diamond Sports Group, whose results are not reported as part of Sinclair’s financials. Diamond filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year in one of the most glaring signs of distress for the once-profitable RSN model, which has come under pressure due to cord-cutting.

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