Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : So just to get started, there's a lot to get into. But you reported fourth quarter earnings a couple of weeks ago. Looking back to 2024, what were some of the highlights for Nexstar? And what are your key priorities heading into 2025?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Great. And we'll get into many of those topics in a bit, but first, I wanted to ask about cord cutting. Pay TV obviously has experienced elevated cord-cutting over the past decade. But we've started to see the pace of subscriber declines actually moderate in the second half of last year. So REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. MARCH 11, 2025 / 1:40PM, NXST.OQ - Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference first, what in your view are the main factors driving this moderation? And second, do you think we'll see further improvement in cord cutting this year?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Taking the next step on that, what would a sustained improvement in cord cutting mean for Nexstar's business?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Great. I wanted to ask next on pricing. You guided to flat growth in distribution revenue in '25, following a relatively light renewal slate in '24, but you have 60% of your base renewing later this year. In the past, you've talked about how broadcast fees underearn relative to the ratings they generate. So how do you think about pricing dynamics in general? And do you still see runway to drive pricing that can more than offset subscriber attrition over the medium to long term?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Over the past year or two, we've seen reverse compensation growth slow as the networks have shifted focus towards other platforms. How have the network views of the linear TV ecosystem evolved over the past few years in your view? And what does that mean for reverse compensation and net retrans going forward?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : 2024 was a down year for non-political advertising, both from some crowd out and on an underlying basis, but it sounds like you're starting to see some improvement in the first quarter, and you got a positive growth for the year. What are you seeing across the advertising space more broadly? And what are the moving pieces for that business in 2025?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Can you touch maybe a little bit more on the local and national markets? And are there any observations from key category verticals we should be paying attention to? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. MARCH 11, 2025 / 1:40PM, NXST.OQ - Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Got it. I wanted to move to regulatory reform, obviously, very topical..

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : You made some statements to that end that I would characterize as pretty optimistic. How do you think about the outlook for regulatory reform? And what are some of the factors that make you feel encouraged that we could see movement on this in the near future?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Can you help us better understand the process that the industry would need to go through to realize these rule changes? And are there any milestones or next steps that would queue us in on whether things are moving along? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. MARCH 11, 2025 / 1:40PM, NXST.OQ - Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Got it. You have a pretty strong track record with M&A, doing large-scale mergers that have created a lot of value for shareholders. What's your philosophy around M&A? What are the important boxes you'd want to look at evaluating an asset or a deal?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Can you talk a bit about the duopoly opportunity if those rules were to change?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Got it. I wanted to touch on political. 2024, as you mentioned before, was a big year. You captured almost $500 million of political advertising. Could we do a bit of a postmortem on the election, how it played out relative to your expectations and any notable observations you had there? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. MARCH 11, 2025 / 1:40PM, NXST.OQ - Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Interesting. I know it's early, but do you have any thoughts on how 2026 for 2028 might compare to 2024?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : It's been a few years since you acquired the CW, and you've since revamped the programming strategy for the network in addition to making progress on the cost side, -- can you reflect on the importance of the CW to Nexstar and how the moves you've made to bring you closer to achieving profitability for that business?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : You implemented a new cost takeout plan late last year, targeting savings in the low to mid-8 figure range for 2025. Can you talk a bit more about this plan and which areas of the business it's going to focus on?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : ATSC 3.0 represents one of the more exciting levers for longer-term growth for your business. To that end, you recently announced EdgeBeam, a JV with some of your peers. Can you talk about the progress you've made on ATSC to date and how this JV helps you accomplish your goals?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : 7 billion megahertz top.

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : We spoke a little bit about M&A before. But can you outline how you think about capital allocation more broadly and in 2025. REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. MARCH 11, 2025 / 1:40PM, NXST.OQ - Nexstar Media Group Inc at Deutsche Bank Media, Internet and Telecom Conference

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : We're starting to see some changes in the live sports ecosystem where teams and leagues are increasingly looking to broadcast as their preferred TV platform. You've done some of these deals already on the local side and with the CW. And now we have NBA coming to NBC beginning next season. How do you see the landscape for sports rights evolving over time? And what could that mean for the business?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Got it. You own a cable news network, News Nation, which in recent years has achieved wide distribution and healthy growth. Can you talk through some of the recent wins for this business and your vision for News Nation going forward?

Question: Benjamin Soff - Deutsche Bank AG - Analyst : Got it. Well, we're just about at time, and that looks like a pretty good place to end it. So thank you both.