Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) released its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by $0.04, FiscalAI reports. Gray Media had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 5.50%. The firm had revenue of $792.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $780.50 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.59 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 24.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Here are the key takeaways from Gray Media’s conference call:

• Q4 results beat guidance — total revenue of $792 million exceeded the high end of guidance, operating expenses were below guidance at $618 million, and Adjusted EBITDA was $179 million.
• Net Retransmission Revenue returned to growth in Q4 and stabilized at $547 million for 2025, with management guiding to modest net retrans growth in 2026.
• Strategic M&A progress — the company closed the WBBJ acquisition for $25 million and expects other announced transactions to close early in 2026 to help reduce debt and leverage ahead of a strong political cycle.
• Balance sheet and capital actions included a $250 million add-on to 9.625% second‑lien notes and a $125 million call of first‑lien notes, leaving >$1.1 billion in liquidity but year‑end total leverage at 5.8x.
• Content and digital strategy acceleration — renewed NBC and expanded Telemundo affiliations, expanded local sports rights, a Quickplay (Google Cloud) streaming rollout, and company‑wide AI tools aim to grow audiences and digital monetization.

Gray Media Stock Down 13.7%

Shares of NYSE GTN traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $5.08. 1,189,819 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,369,726. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60. The company has a market cap of $518.09 million, a PE ratio of 12.38 and a beta of 0.89. Gray Media has a 12 month low of $3.13 and a 12 month high of $6.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $4.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.05.

Gray Media Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. Gray Media’s payout ratio is currently 78.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gray Media

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GTN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Gray Media by 55.3% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,878,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,932,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025,133 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Gray Media by 23.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,188,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,113,000 after buying an additional 994,474 shares during the period. DSC Meridian Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Gray Media during the third quarter valued at $5,432,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gray Media by 76.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,361,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,169,000 after buying an additional 590,704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Gray Media by 81.7% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,209,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,992,000 after acquiring an additional 543,874 shares during the period. 78.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Gray Media

Here are the key news stories impacting Gray Media this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat analyst expectations — Gray reported a smaller-than-expected loss (beats on EPS) and revenue topped estimates, with management saying Adjusted EBITDA exceeded consensus. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a $0.08 quarterly cash dividend (annualized yield ~5.9%), which supports income-oriented holders and can provide demand support for the shares. Dividend Announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Detailed Q4 earnings call transcripts and the slide presentation are available for investors who want management commentary on revenue drivers, ad trends and margin outlook. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces and summaries (Zacks, MarketBeat) confirm the beats but also highlight the sharp YoY revenue decline, useful for context when modeling recovery timing. Zacks Article
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 2026 revenue guidance was lowered to roughly $755M–$770M, below consensus (~$779M), which raises near-term growth concerns and likely pressured the stock. See press release for guidance details.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue is down ~24% year-over-year and the company reported a loss this quarter versus strong EPS the prior year, highlighting cyclical ad weakness — a material headwind for near-term profitability. Conference Call
• Negative Sentiment: Balance-sheet metrics (high leverage: debt-to-equity ~2.6; current ratio <1) may concern investors about financial flexibility if ad market weakness persists. See company filings for details.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GTN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Gray Media from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Gray Media in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Gray Media from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Benchmark increased their target price on Gray Media from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Gray Media from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $7.75.

Gray Media Company Profile

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) is a U.S.-based broadcasting and digital media company that owns and operates a portfolio of local television stations and associated digital platforms. The company’s core business centers on delivering local news, sports and entertainment programming through its network-affiliated broadcast outlets. In addition to traditional over-the-air distribution, Gray Media supports multi-platform video streaming and on-demand services for audiences across its markets.

Gray Media’s television stations carry network programming from major national broadcasters, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and The CW, and often feature locally produced news and public affairs content.