E.W. Scripps Soars 40% After Sinclair Quietly Buys In and Starts Pushing for a Merger

With input from CNBC and Axios.

E.W. Scripps shares rocketed more than 40% on Monday after Sinclair, one of the country’s biggest local TV station owners, quietly built a stake in the company and made clear it wants to merge.

In a regulatory filing, Sinclair disclosed that it has taken roughly an 8% position in Scripps — about 8.2% of the company’s Class A shares — and has been in talks with Scripps “for several months” about a potential combination.

The move instantly set off takeover speculation in a broadcasting industry already bracing for more consolidation.

Sinclair’s own stock rose about 7% on the news.

Sinclair said it bought the stake — costing about $15.6 million — as part of a broader strategic review that could end with a merger or major restructuring.

In its filing, the company argued that:

• Recent industry consolidation and tougher competition from Big Tech and major media players make it essential to bulk up.
• A deal with Scripps could generate about $300 million in synergies, based on current trading multiples.
• A combined company would have more scale to compete for ad dollars, negotiate with cable and satellite providers, and invest in streaming and local news.

“Further scale in the broadcast television industry is essential,” Sinclair said, adding that it believes a transaction could close within 9 to 12 months if the two sides strike a deal.

The company also framed consolidation as a way to protect local journalism, saying bigger groups are better positioned to “sustain their vital public service role in producing local news.”

If Sinclair expected a warm welcome, it didn’t get one.

In a statement Monday, E.W. Scripps said its board:

“will take all steps appropriate to protect the company and the company’s shareholders from the opportunistic actions of Sinclair or anyone else.”

Scripps stressed that:

• Its board and management are focused on executing its own strategic plan, which includes expanding its national sports footprint and connected TV business.
• It is committed to doing only what is in the best interest of all shareholders, as well as its employees and the communities it serves across the US.
• The board continues to review “any transactions and other alternatives” that could add value — but on its own terms.

In other words: Scripps isn’t closing the door on deals, but it clearly doesn’t want to be pushed into one under pressure.

The company has struggled in recent years in a brutally competitive environment and is one of the smaller players in local TV. Earlier this year, CEO Adam Symson said Scripps isn’t in a position to pull off a large-scale acquisition of its own — which makes it more likely to be a target rather than a buyer.

Local broadcast TV groups, including Scripps and Sinclair, have been squeezed by:

• The decline of the traditional cable bundle, which has cut into their retransmission revenue.
• A shift in ad dollars toward streaming platforms and digital giants like Google and Meta.
• Rising programming and sports rights costs.

Most broadcasters still rely heavily on retransmission fees — the per-subscriber payments they get from cable and satellite operators — but those fees are under pressure as more people cut the cord.

To survive, station owners have been pushing to merge and bulk up, hoping size will help them negotiate better carriage deals, spread costs, and finance investments in digital and streaming.

Under the Trump-era Federal Communications Commission, the regulatory environment has become more favorable to that strategy.

• The FCC has signaled it may roll back long-standing ownership caps that prevent a single broadcaster from reaching more than 39% of US households.
• Commissioner Brendan Carr has argued the FCC can lift the cap without Congress, and major industry groups like the National Association of Broadcasters strongly support that view.
• Critics and some smaller media companies say Congress already locked in that limit and the FCC no longer has the authority to change it.

That looming policy shift has lit a fire under dealmaking:

• Nexstar, the largest local broadcast group in the US, agreed to acquire Tegna, the fourth-largest, in a multibillion-dollar deal.
• Apollo Global Management, which controls Cox Media Group, has reportedly weighed offers as it looks to exit its stake.

Sinclair itself has been exploring options, including a possible spin-off or split of its ventures unit, which includes The Tennis Channel and its marketing tech arm (recently rebranded as Digital Remedy).

For now, Sinclair has made it clear it sees Scripps as an attractive merger partner:

• It’s smaller but has valuable station markets, plus ambitions in sports and connected TV that could complement Sinclair’s portfolio.
• A deal would further cement Sinclair’s position as one of the top three local broadcasters in the country.

The big questions:

• Will Scripps engage? Its initial statement sounded defensive, but boards often start from a “back off” stance before sitting down at the table — especially if the stock has just popped 40% on speculation.
• Will regulators go along? Even with a friendlier FCC, any tie-up between major TV station owners is going to attract scrutiny over media concentration and local competition.
• What price is Sinclair willing to pay? A 40% jump in Scripps’ shares in a single day makes any potential bid more expensive — and shareholders may now expect a significant premium over even those elevated levels.

Sinclair isn’t saying more publicly for now; it declined to comment beyond its SEC filing.

What’s clear is that Scripps, long seen as a smaller, vulnerable player in a consolidating industry, is suddenly at the center of a high-stakes tug-of-war over the future shape of local television — and Wall Street is betting this story is only just getting started.