Today CNBC reported that Sinclair has hired an investment bank called Moelis to look at a possible sale of some assets. These include up to 60 local ABC, CBS, FOX, CW, and NBC stations, along with the Tennis Channel. This would represent about 30% of its broadcast TV stations.
This deal could bring in as much as $1.56 billion, according to people familiar with the talks. It would also put major stations in some of the largest markets like Minneapolis, Portland, Pittsburgh, Austin, and Fresno up for sale among others.
“As we’ve always stated, we have no sacred cows,” CEO Chris Ripley said during Sinclair’s earnings conference call. “We want to unlock the sum of the parts valuation that we think we’re grossly undervalued for. And to the extent that asset sales makes sense in order to unlock that value and help us de-lever, then that’s something that we’d be open to as well.”
Sinclair, along with other TV stations, are facing a tough ad market and the growth of cord cutting eating into their profits. Now Sinclair is cutting costs by unloading some channels.
At the end of the 1st quarter of 2024, Sinclair reported revenue of $798 million.
Bloomberg first reported the news that the Tennis channel was up for sale.
Update: Sinclair declined to comment on the CNBC report.
Please follow us on Facebook and X for more news, tips, and reviews. Need cord cutting tech support? Join our Cord Cutting Tech Support Facebook Group for help.