NXST vs WBD Stock Comparison

Nexstar Media and Warner Bros. Discovery Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
NXST Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
$167.34 +1.1% 1M -12.5% 1Y
Market cap
$5.04B
P/E
26.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.88B
Div. yield
0.04%
Television Broadcasting Communication Services
4 wins
WBD Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.
$30.98 +9.7% 1M +62.4% 1Y
Market cap
$77.70B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$36.12B
Div. yield
–
Television Broadcasting Communication Services
5 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Warner Bros. Discovery leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Warner Bros. Discovery 5, Nexstar Media 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNXSTWBDLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.04B $77.70B WBD
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 26.8x -24.6x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 5.1x — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +10.5% -6.1% NXST
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 3.2% -8.8% NXST
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.8% -1.6% NXST
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 8.3x 7.5x WBD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.04% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -12.5% +62.4% WBD
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +2.0%/yr +3.2%/yr WBD
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 36.6% 26.7% WBD
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 31/100 NXST

Percentile Scorecard

NXSTWBD

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisNXSTWBD
Valuation 68 #18 of 54 23 #42 of 54
Growth 30 #32 of 45 25 #34 of 45
Profitability 74 #12 of 43 36 #28 of 43
Financial Health 36 #40 of 62 41 #37 of 62
Shareholder Returns 44 #15 of 26 –
Overall 50 31
  • NXST ranked among 63 companies in Advertising and Media
  • WBD ranked among 63 companies in Advertising and Media

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodNXSTWBDSPY
1 month +1.1%+9.7% -1.0%
3 months -8.7%+18.6% +2.9%
6 months -17.9%+13.2% +6.4%
Year to date -17.6%+7.5% +11.4%
1 year -12.5%+62.4% +13.1%
3 years +18.9%+201.4% +79.4%
3 years, per year +5.9%+44.5% +21.5%
5 years +10.4%+17.1% +67.7%
5 years, per year +2.0%+3.2% +10.9%
10 years +221.9%+11.3% +255.2%
10 years, per year +12.4%+1.1% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureNXSTWBDSPY
Volatility, 1Y 36.6%26.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.7%18.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.440.50 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.342.34 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.0%-78.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -34.0%0.0% -2.5%
52-week high $253.64$30.98 $779.14
52-week low $154.70$17.10 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleNXSTWBD
P/E now vs peer median 27.3xmedian 18.8x -24.6xmedian 18.8x
P/S now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 0.7x 2.2xmedian 0.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.0xmedian 11.1x 28.0xmedian 11.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 6.9xmedian 9.4x 35.6xmedian 9.4x
P/B now vs peer median 2.3xmedian 1.6x 2.3xmedian 1.6x
PEG now vs peer median -0.85median 0.44 -1.04median 0.44

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsNXSTWBD
Revenue $5.88B $36.12B
Gross profit $3.21B $17.06B
Operating income $1.04B -$1.27B
Net income $168.00M -$3.15B
Free cash flow $743.00M $2.18B
EPS (diluted) $6.08 $-1.23
Cash & equivalents $218.00M $3.37B
Total debt $36.59B $32.02B
Shares (diluted) 30.91M 2.58B
Enterprise value $3.87B $63.36B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricNXSTWBD
P/E 27.3x -24.6x
P/FCF 6.9x 35.6x
P/Operating cash flow 5.8x 22.7x
P/S 0.9x 2.2x
P/B 2.3x 2.3x
P/Tangible book -1.8x 9.6x
EV/EBITDA 12.0x 28.0x
EV/EBIT 16.0x -83.6x
EV/Revenue 2.8x 2.9x
EV/FCF 22.5x 48.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 18.7x 31.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.85 -1.04

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNXSTWBD
Revenue growth (1Y) 10.5% -6.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.8% -4.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 4.0% 2.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 0.5% 2.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -11.9% -675.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 0.4% 38.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -71.9% -595.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -35.6% 22.3%
EPS growth (1Y) -70.7% -500.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -31.9% 23.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -35.3% -32.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -11.1% -7.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -40.7% -46.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -12.3% -10.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNXSTWBD
Gross margin 54.6% 47.2%
EBITDA margin 23.7% 10.5%
Operating margin 17.8% -3.5%
Pretax margin 3.6% -10.4%
Net margin 3.2% -8.8%
FCF margin 12.6% 6.0%
Operating cash flow margin 15.2% 9.5%
Return on equity 8.3% -9.3%
Return on assets 1.0% -3.2%
Return on invested capital 5.8% -1.6%
Return on capital employed 6.3% -1.6%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 5.3x -1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 1.7% 2.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNXSTWBD
Debt / assets 66.3% 32.9%
Debt / equity 5.2x 0.9x
Net debt / EBITDA 8.3x 7.5x
Debt / FCF 15.8x 14.7x
Liabilities / assets 87.2% 65.0%
Equity / assets 12.8% 35.0%
Interest coverage 2.1x -0.6x
Current ratio 1.6x 0.8x
Quick ratio 1.4x 0.5x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 1.07 0.82

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNXSTWBD
Dividend yield 4.4% –
Net buyback yield – –
Shareholder yield 4.4% 0.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) 134.5% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 30.4% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 2.7% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 10.6% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusNXSTWBD
Forward P/E 5.1xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $32.91FY2026 $-1.08FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +997.0%FY2026 -472.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -45.6% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $8.32BFY2026 $34.48BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +68.2%FY2026 -7.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.3% +11.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNXSTWBD
Held by institutions 100.0% 77.8%
Institutions holding 486 1,319
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.0% +10.9%
Institutions buying 220 628
Institutions selling 181 436
Buyers to sellers 1.22 1.44

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

NXSTWBD
NXST 1.00 0.15
WBD 0.15 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NXST and WBD?

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is the largest by market capitalisation: Nexstar Media (NXST) $5.04B, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) $77.70B.

Which company is growing faster?

Nexstar Media (NXST) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Nexstar Media (NXST) +10.5%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) -6.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Nexstar Media (NXST) has the highest net margin (Nexstar Media (NXST) 3.2%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) -8.8%). On return on invested capital, Nexstar Media (NXST) leads (Nexstar Media (NXST) 5.8%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) -1.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) returned the most: Nexstar Media (NXST) -12.5%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) +62.4%. Over five years, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) compounded fastest (Nexstar Media (NXST) +2.0%/yr, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) +3.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Nexstar Media (NXST) 0.04%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) 0.00%. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has been the steadiest (Nexstar Media (NXST) 36.6%, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) 26.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do NXST and WBD move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.15, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, NXST and WBD?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.