Gray Media NYSE: GTN reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $839 million, up 9% from a year earlier and about $9 million above the high end of its adjusted guidance range, as political advertising outperformed expectations and recently completed acquisitions contributed to results.
Net income attributable to stockholders was $21 million, while adjusted EBITDA totaled $214 million. Chairman and CEO Hilton Howell said the quarter included the impact of three acquisitions and a station swap with E.W. Scripps that closed during the period.
Political advertising exceeds expectations
Political revenue reached $83 million in the second quarter, exceeding Gray's guidance of $60 million to $70 million. The total included $3 million from stations acquired during the quarter. The company said second-quarter political revenue compared with $47 million in the 2024 presidential-election cycle and $90 million in the comparable quarter of the 2022 midterm cycle.
For the third quarter, Gray expects political revenue of $165 million to $185 million. President and Co-CEO Pat LaPlatney said political spending is typically weighted toward the back half of the quarter, with September historically accounting for roughly half of quarterly political revenue.
Gray said its station footprint covers all 12 U.S. Senate races, all 11 gubernatorial races and 29 House races considered competitive by The Cook Political Report at the time of the call. Management cited primary spending in several states, including Tennessee, Kansas, Florida, Michigan, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Connecticut and Hawaii, as well as early general-election spending in Senate contests in Maine, Ohio, Iowa, Alaska and Michigan.
Howell said the company intends to direct essentially all incremental political advertising cash flow toward debt reduction.
Core advertising remains soft, while digital grows
Core advertising revenue declined 1% from a year earlier on a reported basis during the second quarter. Adjusted for the second-quarter acquisitions, core advertising would have declined in the mid-single digits, consistent with Gray's guidance. LaPlatney estimated that political advertising crowd-out accounted for about one percentage point of the core-advertising decline, while FIFA World Cup programming provided a tailwind.
Source: MarketBeat
