4 Broadcast Radio & TV Stocks to Watch From a Prospering Industry

The Zacks Broadcast Radio and Television industry has been benefiting from a massive spike in digital content consumption. Companies such as Netflix NFLX, Fox FOXA, Roku Inc. ROKU and Sirius XM SIRI are thriving due to their diverse content offerings, which include original, regional and short-form content tailored for small screens like smartphones and tablets. Improved Internet speed and penetration, coupled with technological advancements, have been advantageous for industry participants. As monetization and revenues from advertising spending continue to be modest, strategies focused on profit protection, cash management and greater technology integration have gained significance and are expected to aid these companies in driving top-line growth in the near term. However, the industry is grappling with an escalation in cord-cutting despite a surge in demand for streaming content.

Industry Description

The Zacks Broadcast Radio and Television industry encompasses companies that provide entertainment, sports, news, non-fiction and musical content across television, radio and digital media platforms. These entities generate revenues through the sale of television and radio programs, advertising slots and subscriptions. With technological advancements and a growing demand for virtual reality and Internet radio, industry players are increasing their investments in research and development, as well as sales and marketing efforts, to remain competitive. The industry's focus is likely to shift toward sustaining current levels of operations, coupled with a renewed emphasis on flexibility. This approach would accelerate the transition to a variable cost model, thereby reducing fixed costs and enhancing agility in the face of evolving market dynamics.

4 Broadcast Radio and Television Industry Trends to Watch

Shift in Consumer Preference a Key Catalyst: To adapt to the evolving landscape, companies are diversifying their content offerings for over-the-top (OTT) services alongside traditional linear TV. The availability of streaming services across a wide range of platforms has enabled them to reach a global audience, expand their international user base and attract advertisers to their platforms, thereby boosting ad revenues. The utilization of services that aid advertisers in measuring their return on investment and enhancing use cases is expected to benefit industry participants. Major leagues and events, such as the NFL, NHL, Olympics, European Games, EPL and elections, also contribute significantly to ad revenue generation.

Increased Digital Viewing Fuels Content Demand: Many industry participants, either launching their own OTT services or acquiring existing ones, leverage user insights to deliver tailored content. The surge in digital viewing has made consumer data readily available, allowing companies to apply artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning techniques to create or procure targeted content. This approach not only boosts user engagement but also enables industry players to raise the prices of their services at opportune moments without the fear of losing subscribers.

Uncertain Macroeconomic Landscape Impedes Production and Ad Demand: Advertising is a significant revenue source for the Broadcast Radio and Television industry. However, industry participants are grappling with the effects of persistently high inflation, rising interest rates, increased capital costs, a soaring U.S. dollar and the looming threat of a recession. These factors have prompted advertisers to trim their ad budgets, which is expected to impact the top-line growth of industry players in the near term. Moreover, intense competition for ad dollars from tech and social media companies has been a significant impediment to the growth of industry participants.

Low-Priced Skinny Bundles Impact Revenues: The surge in cord-cutting has compelled industry participants to offer "skinny bundles." These Internet-based services often contain fewer channels than traditional subscriptions and are, therefore, more affordable. This move aligns with changing consumer viewing dynamics, as growth in Internet penetration and advancements in mobile, video and wireless technologies have boosted small-screen viewing. While these alternative services are expected to keep users engaged with their platforms, increasing the need for additional content, the low-priced skinny bundles are likely to dampen the top-line performance of industry players.

Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Bright Prospects

The Zacks Broadcast Radio and Television industry is housed within the broader Zacks Consumer Discretionary sector. It currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #91, which places it in the top 37% of more than 250 Zacks industries.

The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, which is the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates dismal near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than two to one.

The industry’s position in the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries results from a positive earnings outlook for the constituent companies in aggregate. Looking at the aggregate earnings estimate revisions, it appears that analysts are optimistic about this group’s earnings growth potential.

Before we present some stocks that you may want to consider for your portfolio, let’s take a look at the industry’s recent stock-market performance and valuation picture.

Industry Lags Sector, S&P 500

The Zacks Broadcast Radio and Television industry has underperformed the broader Zacks Consumer Discretionary sector and the S&P 500 Index in the past six-month period.

The industry has declined 12.5% over this period against the S&P 500’s 13.9% return. The broader sector has declined 5.1% in the same time frame.

6-Month Price Performance

Industry's Current Valuation

On the basis of trailing 12-month Enterprise Value/ Earnings before Interest Tax Depreciation and Amortization (EV/EBITDA), which is a commonly used multiple for valuing Broadcast Radio and Television stocks, the industry is currently trading at 8.04X versus the S&P 500’s 17.68X and the sector’s 8.65X.

In the past five years, the industry has traded as high as 15.56X and as low as 4.92X, recording a median of 8.18X, as the chart below shows.

EV/EBITDA Ratio (TTM)

4 Broadcast Radio and Television Stocks to Watch

Roku's strong fundamental trajectory positions the stock favorably in the near term. Second-quarter 2026 results, released in August, revealed record net income of $164 million, adjusted EBITDA of $254 million and TTM Free Cash Flow of $704 million, driven by 25% platform revenue growth. Advertising gross margin expanded 650 basis points year over year to 62.4%, reflecting a meaningful mix shift toward higher-margin ad products. Political advertising already surpassed the comparable 2024 presidential cycle period, with momentum building through the fourth quarter. The AI-powered Home Screen, completed across the United States early in the third quarter, reinforces household retention and monetization. Subscription revenues climbed 26% year over year. Roku's 10th Developer Summit, scheduled for September, signals continued platform investment. The pending FOX Corporation acquisition adds a compelling near-term catalyst for this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) company. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has moved north by 1.1% to $2.78 per share in the past 30 days. ROKU shares have returned 62.6% in the past six-month period.

Price and Consensus: ROKU

Netflix's near-term investment case rests on strengthening monetization, expanding content variety and aggressive capital return. Management reaffirmed 2026 revenue guidance of $51.0-$51.4 billion and a 31.5% operating margin, implying over 20% operating income growth year over year. Advertising revenues are tracking toward an approximate doubling to nearly $3 billion, powered by programmatic access extended to Pause Ads and live inventory this summer, accelerating the ads flywheel. An expanded NFL agreement, covering a third-quarter week-one matchup, Thanksgiving Eve game, and NFL Christmas Gameday, strengthens live programming and member acquisition pull. Content partnerships with Condé Nast, Hearst, and People launch in August, broadening engagement. Third-quarter operating margin is guided at 33.2%. A $27.1 billion remaining share repurchase capacity adds a firm near-term floor for shareholders.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has remained steady at $3.59 per share in the past 30 days. Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have plunged 19.4% in the past six-month period.

Price and Consensus: NFLX

Fox Corporation's pending Roku acquisition — expected to close in the first half of 2027 — creates the third-largest U.S. television entity by share of viewing, adding 100 million-plus streaming households and targeting $400 million in run-rate cost synergies. Robust fiscal 2026 full-year results — record revenues of $17.13 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $3.91 billion — provide a strong financial foundation entering fiscal 2027. The newly launched FOX One direct-to-consumer streaming service opens a scalable subscription revenue channel for this Zacks Rank #3 company. Tubi's digital advertising growth further diversifies revenues. An increased semi-annual dividend of 29 cents per share (payable Sept. 23, 2026) and $3.4 billion in remaining buyback capacity highlight shareholder-friendly capital returns. Red Seat Ventures' expanding podcast monetization via Amazon DSP and Apple Podcasts adds digital scale.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has moved north by 1.4% to $5.94 per share in the past 30 days. FOXA shares have jumped 12.9% in the past six-month period.

Price and Consensus: FOXA

SiriusXM’s fundamental trajectory is improving meaningfully. The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance across all three key metrics — revenues to approximately $8.525 billion, adjusted EBITDA to approximately $2.625 billion, and free cash flow to approximately $1.375 billion. Record-low self-pay churn of 1.4% and the first positive second-quarter self-pay net additions in four years signal genuine strengthening in subscriber health. Personalized listening through AI-powered artist stations surged 50% year over year, validating growing platform engagement. The successful SXM-11 satellite launch further bolsters long-term infrastructure resilience. In September 2026, the promotion of a dedicated chief product and technology officer positions SiriusXM to accelerate its next-generation 360L in-car experience and AI-driven personalization. Consistent quarterly dividends and disciplined cost management underscore a durable, shareholder-friendly business model for this Zacks Rank #3 company.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has moved south by 0.3% to $3 per share in the past 30 days. In the past six-month period, SIRI shares have returned 29.9%.

Price and Consensus: SIRI

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Netflix, Inc. (NFLX): Free Stock Analysis Report

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