Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST): BCG Matrix [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're looking for a clear map of Nexstar Media Group's current standing, so let's cut straight to the portfolio breakdown using the BCG Matrix as of late 2025. We see the high-growth Star in NewsNation challenging rivals, while rock-solid Distribution Revenue-hitting a record $762 million in Q1-keeps the lights on, generating substantial cash flow. But the picture isn't perfect; cyclical political advertising is a clear Dog, dropping sharply to just $6 million in Q1, and the massive turnaround play, The CW Network, remains a high-investment Question Mark despite cutting losses by 24%. Dive in below to see exactly where Nexstar Media Group is investing, milking, and managing risk across its assets.

Background of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST)

You're looking at Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST), which stands as the largest television station owner-operator across the United States right now. Honestly, the scale is impressive; they own or partner with over 200 stations spanning 116 U.S. markets, giving them reach to about 220 million people.

The company's portfolio isn't just local; it includes national properties like NewsNation, our national news network, and 75% ownership of the fifth major broadcast network, The CW. Plus, Nexstar Media Group holds a 31.3% stake in the TV Food Network.

For the trailing twelve months ending September 30, 2025, Nexstar Media Group posted revenue of about $5.15 billion, which actually represented a year-over-year decline of around 7.3%. This dip is heavily influenced by the cyclical nature of political advertising, as seen in their Q3 2025 results.

Looking specifically at the third quarter of 2025, net revenue came in at $1.20 billion, marking a 12.3% drop compared to Q3 2024. The advertising segment took the biggest hit, falling 23.5% year-over-year to $476 million, mainly because political ad spending was much lower than the 'unprecedented' levels in 2024.

Still, the core business showed some stability; distribution revenue only slipped a little, from $719 million to $709 million, a loss of just under 1.5%. On the profitability side, Q3 2025 net income was $65 million, a significant drop of 63.9%, and Adjusted EBITDA settled at $358 million, down nearly 30%.

Operationally, the company is pushing its networks. The CW generated its sixth straight quarter of primetime ratings growth and managed to cut its losses by 24% year-over-year in Q3 2025. Furthermore, NewsNation was recognized as the fastest-growing cable network overall year-over-year by Nielsen.

Strategically, Nexstar Media Group announced a definitive agreement in Q3 2025 to acquire TEGNA Inc. for $6.2 billion, a move management believes will be highly accretive and enhance their market position. As of September 30, 2025, the company's total debt stood at $6.4 billion.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) - BCG Matrix: Stars

NewsNation is positioned as a Star within the Nexstar Media Group, Inc. portfolio, characterized by its high growth trajectory within the national news segment. This unit is leveraging the existing scale and distribution footprint of Nexstar Media Group, Inc., which owns America's largest local television broadcasting group with 201 owned or partner stations in 116 U.S. markets, reaching 220 million people as of March 2025.

The network has been cited as the fastest growing cable network in the third quarter of 2025. This growth is evident in its year-over-year performance metrics. For instance, in June 2025, NewsNation recorded the highest year-over-year growth among basic cable networks, increasing its total day viewership by nearly 50 percent and its audience among adults aged 25 to 54 by 67 percent among 112 Nielsen-rated ad-supported basic cable channels.

The high-growth nature of this platform is also demonstrated by specific program performance. You can see the significant year-over-year audience increases for key weekday programs in June 2025:

• Morning in America (6-9 a.m. ET, 25-54 demo): 175 percent growth.
• NewsNation Live (9 a.m.-12 p.m. ET, 25-54 demo): 225 percent growth.
• NewsNation Now with Nichole Berlie (12-3 p.m. ET, 25-54 demo): 167 percent growth.
• NewsNation Now with Connell McShane (3-6 p.m. ET, 25-54 demo): 180 percent growth in the demo.
• The Hill (6-7 p.m. ET, 25-54 demo): 150 percent growth among adults 25-54.
• Cuomo (Primetime): Audience increased by 30 percent year-over-year.
• NewsNation mobile app visits: Increased 230 percent year-over-year.

To illustrate the competitive positioning, NewsNation outperformed established rivals in specific time slots during the first quarter of 2025. For example, during a Saturday prime time special report at 8 p.m. ET, NewsNation secured a key demo win over both CNN and MSNBC among viewers aged 25-54:

This performance suggests NewsNation is gaining traction in the high-growth national news segment. However, as a Star, this growth requires continued investment. For context, Nexstar Media Group, Inc.'s Q1 2025 Net Revenue was $1.234 billion, a 3.9% decrease year-over-year, largely due to a 10.2% drop in Advertising revenue to $460 million, where political advertising fell to $6 million. Distribution revenue, however, was a bright spot at $762 million, up 0.1%. The Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $381 million.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) - BCG Matrix: Cash Cows

Cash cows are your bedrock; they're the established market leaders generating more cash than they consume, funding the rest of your portfolio. For Nexstar Media Group, Inc., this is clearly the core broadcast station group, especially its retransmission fee business.

Distribution Revenue, which is what you collect from cable, satellite, and vMVPD providers (retransmission fees), remains the largest and definitely the most stable revenue stream for Nexstar Media Group, Inc. This stream provides the necessary ballast against the volatility of advertising cycles.

You saw a record first quarter for this segment. Q1 2025 distribution revenue hit $762 million, which was a slight increase of 0.1% over the comparable prior year quarter, showing that contractual rate escalators are successfully offsetting subscriber attrition. That's exactly what a cash cow should do: maintain revenue through pricing power even as the underlying subscriber base shifts.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is the largest U.S. local television broadcasting company. Its owned or partner stations in 116 U.S. markets reach approximately 70% of U.S. television households, based on the latest available full-year data before 2025. This massive, mature market share is the definition of a high-share, low-growth cash cow asset.

The output of this segment is clear in the cash generation. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. generated substantial Adjusted Free Cash Flow, which stood at $348 million in Q1 2025. This figure is what you use to service debt, pay shareholders, and fund those riskier Question Marks.

Here's a quick look at the Q1 2025 financial snapshot that illustrates this cash-generating power:

Because this business unit is mature, the focus isn't on massive new promotion; it's on efficiency and contract maintenance. Investments are targeted to 'milk' the gains passively or improve the infrastructure supporting the existing cash flow.

For the remainder of 2025, the operational focus directly supports maintaining this Cash Cow status:

• Renewing distribution contracts covering approximately 60% of the subscriber base this year.
• Maintaining disciplined expense management to support cash flow.
• Deploying Adjusted Free Cash Flow to repay debt (e.g., $31 million repaid in Q1 2025).
• Paying dividends to shareholders (e.g., $57 million paid in Q1 2025).

The fact that Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities increased by 22.1% to $337 million in Q1 2025, even as Net Revenue declined, shows the operational leverage you have in this segment. You're getting more cash out of every dollar of revenue generated by these established assets. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) - BCG Matrix: Dogs

Units categorized as Dogs in the Boston Consulting Group Matrix for Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) are those operating in low market growth segments with a low relative market share. These areas frequently consume cash or break even, tying up capital that could be better deployed elsewhere. For Nexstar Media Group, Inc., the most prominent example of this dynamic is the highly cyclical nature of political advertising revenue in non-election years.

The sharp drop-off in political advertising revenue immediately following a major election cycle clearly illustrates this Dog characteristic. Consider the first quarter comparison:

This immediate post-election revenue compression shows the inherent volatility and low-growth nature of this revenue stream when viewed across the full two-year political cycle. The market for political advertising is not growing year-over-year; it is spiking dramatically in even-numbered years and collapsing in odd-numbered years, fitting the low-growth profile of a Dog when averaged out.

The situation in the third quarter further emphasizes the cyclical trap. Overall advertising revenue dropped a significant 23.5% year-over-year in Q3 2025, falling to $476 million from $622 million in Q3 2024.

The primary driver for this decline is the political revenue swing:

• Q3 2025 Political Advertising Revenue was only $10 million.
• Q3 2024 Political Advertising Revenue was $155 million.
• This represents a year-over-year drop of $145 million in political spend alone.

Conversely, the non-political local advertising revenue, which represents the core, non-cyclical business, is facing secular headwinds. While Chairman and CEO Perry Sook noted that non-political local advertising revenue was stable year-over-year in Q3 2025, this stability exists within the context of the broader linear TV market facing secular decline. This segment is a candidate for divestiture or significant restructuring because expensive turn-around plans are unlikely to reverse the long-term trend of cord-cutting and digital migration.

The characteristics of these revenue streams suggest they should be avoided or minimized:

• They are cash traps when political spending is absent.
• They require ongoing operational maintenance with low expected growth.
• Expensive efforts to revitalize linear local advertising face structural market resistance.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) - BCG Matrix: Question Marks

The Question Marks quadrant for Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NXST) is dominated by high-growth, high-investment ventures that have not yet achieved a dominant market share, primarily centered around The CW Network and certain digital properties.

The CW Network (75% ownership) represents the primary Question Mark. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. holds a 75% ownership interest in The CW Network, LLC. The strategic pivot to live sports and unscripted content is designed to move this unit out of the red, with the company reaffirming expectations for The CW to achieve profitability during 2026.

The investment in programming is substantial, with a clear focus on sports. For 2025, sports or "sports-adjacent" content is planned to account for about 40% of total programming time, equating to approximately 400 hours of sports programming for the year. This shift has driven down costs; programming costs were $560 million in 2022, with an expectation of $270 million for 2024.

While direct 2025 third-quarter loss reduction data is pending the November 6, 2025 report, the trend shows significant progress. In the third quarter of 2024, operating losses for The CW were trimmed by $36 million year-over-year. Year-to-date through Q3 2024, operating losses were reduced by $119 million. As of March 31, 2025, The CW Network had $20 million of cash on its balance sheet.

The digital assets, which include The Hill and local sites, show high growth potential in terms of audience reach but remain a smaller revenue contributor relative to core broadcast operations. The portfolio of digital assets, including local TV station websites, The Hill, and NewsNationNow.com, is collectively a Top 10 U.S. digital news and information property. In 2024, this portfolio attracted nearly 103 million monthly unique users on average. For the year ended December 31, 2024, digital advertising accounted for approximately 20% of Nexstar Media Group, Inc.'s non-political advertising revenue.

Here is a summary of the key metrics associated with these Question Marks:

The strategic focus for these assets involves rapid market share capture through content investment, which necessitates high cash consumption now for potential future Star status. The digital assets require investment to convert high traffic into a larger revenue share.

• The CW Network is a high-investment turnaround project.
• Digital assets are a Top 10 U.S. news property.
• The CW programming is heavily weighted toward sports.

The required actions for these units are clear:

• Invest heavily in The CW to accelerate the path to profitability by 2026.
• Invest in digital assets to increase their revenue contribution percentage above 20% of non-political advertising revenue.
• Monitor the cash burn rate, noting The CW had $20 million in cash as of March 31, 2025.