We expect that pay TV industry headwinds faced by linear television and the continued transition of advertising to digital mediums will result in ongoing challenges for Sinclair.
Pay TV distributors are less able to challenge Sinclair on rate increases due to Sinclair’s affiliations and scale.
Bears
Advertising dollars are continually being diverted from broadcast and other traditional media to social media and programmatic advertising, threatening Sinclair’s advertising revenue.
Sinclair Inc. is the owner-operator of the second largest portfolio of television stations in the United States, with 185 full power stations in 86 markets, covering 40% of US households. Of the firm's roughly 600 channels, 150 are affiliated with the four national broadcasters—Fox, ABC, CBS, and NBC—with over 80 other channels aligned with The CW (Nexstar) and MyNetworkTV (Fox). Sinclair owns the Tennis Channel and stakes in Marquee Sports Network and YES Network, providing their premium sports content to pay TV distributors.