E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) vs. Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) Financial Contrast

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) and Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, dividends, risk and earnings.

Risk & Volatility

E.W. Scripps has a beta of 0.99, meaning that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Townsquare Media has a beta of 1.16, meaning that its stock price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for E.W. Scripps and Townsquare Media, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
E.W. Scripps	1	1	1	0	2.00
Townsquare Media	1	0	2	0	2.33

E.W. Scripps currently has a consensus price target of $5.50, suggesting a potential upside of 31.74%. Townsquare Media has a consensus price target of $16.50, suggesting a potential upside of 257.53%. Given Townsquare Media’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Townsquare Media is more favorable than E.W. Scripps.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares E.W. Scripps and Townsquare Media”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
E.W. Scripps	$2.32 billion	0.16	$87.60 million	($0.44)	-9.49
Townsquare Media	$438.70 million	0.17	-$10.93 million	$1.03	4.48

E.W. Scripps has higher revenue and earnings than Townsquare Media. E.W. Scripps is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Townsquare Media, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

E.W. Scripps pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. Townsquare Media pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 17.3%. E.W. Scripps pays out -45.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Townsquare Media pays out 77.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Townsquare Media has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Townsquare Media is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares E.W. Scripps and Townsquare Media’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
E.W. Scripps	4.25%	17.68%	2.98%
Townsquare Media	7.93%	-56.87%	3.43%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

67.8% of E.W. Scripps shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.7% of Townsquare Media shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of E.W. Scripps shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 30.5% of Townsquare Media shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Townsquare Media beats E.W. Scripps on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About E.W. Scripps

The E.W. Scripps Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media enterprise through a portfolio of local television stations, national news, and entertainment networks in the United States. It operates through Local Media, Scripps Networks, and Other segments. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, which produce news, information, sports, and entertainment content, as well as its related digital operations; runs network, syndicated, and original programming, and local sporting events; and provides core and political advertising services. The Scripps Networks segment offers national television networks through free over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite, connected TV, and digital distribution. This segment also provides Scripp News, a national news network, which provides politics, entertainment, science, and technology news; Court TV, which showcases live trials; entertainment brands, such as Bounce, Defy TV, Grit, ION Mystery, and Laff; and ION, a national network of broadcast stations and broadcast television spectrum, which distributes programming through Federal Communications Commission-licensed television stations, as well as affiliated TV stations through over-the-air broadcast and pay TV platforms. In addition, it provides content and services through digital platforms, including the Internet, smartphones, and tablets; Nuvyyo, which offers consumers DVR product solutions to watch and record free over-the-air HDTV on connected devices; and Scripps National Spelling Bee, which shows educational programs. The company serves audiences and businesses through cable and satellite service providers. The E.W. Scripps Company was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

About Townsquare Media

Townsquare Media, Inc. operates as a digital media and marketing solutions company in small and medium-sized businesses. It operates through three segments: Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions, Digital Advertising, and Broadcast Advertising. The Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions segment offers website design, creation, and development, as well as hosting services; and search engine optimization, online directory optimization, e-commerce solutions, online reputation monitoring, social media management, appointment scheduling, payment and invoice, customer management, and email and SMS marketing services. The Digital Advertising segment provides digital advertising on its owned and operated, digital programmatic advertising, and data analytics and management platform. The Broadcast Advertising segment engages in the sale of advertising on local radio stations to local, regional, and national spot advertisers, as well as national network advertisers. It also owns and operates live events, including concerts, expositions, and other experiential events; and operates local media under the WYRK.com, WJON.com, and NJ101.5.com brands, as well as national music under the XXLmag.com, TasteofCountry.com, UltimateClassicRock.com, and Loudwire.com brands. The company was formerly known as Regent Communications, Inc. and changed its name to Townsquare Media, Inc. in May 2010. Townsquare Media, Inc. is headquartered in Purchase, New York.