Nexstar’s Ad Sales Drop 23% in Q3, CW Cuts Losses by 24%

Nexstar reported its third-quarter 2025 earnings on Thursday, showing that advertising revenue fell 23.5% year over year in the July-September quarter.

Additionally, Nexstar says the CW Network has reduced its losses by 24% since the comparable period last year.

According to Nexstar, total ad sales in the third quarter were $476 million, down $146 million from the third quarter of 2024. Political ad revenue was $10 million, down $145 million, which Nexstar attributes to the current election cycle.

Wall Street forecasts earnings per share (EPS) of $1.83 on revenue of $1.2 billion, according to consensus data from LSEG analysts. Nexstar reported diluted earnings per share of $2.14 on revenue of $1.2 billion. Net revenue fell 12.3%, which Netflix mainly attributes to lower sales of political ads.

“In the third quarter, we took a major step forward in shaping the future of Nexstar when we entered into a definitive agreement to acquire TEGNA Inc. for $6.2 billion in a highly profitable transaction,” said Perry Sook, founder, chairman and CEO of Nexstar, in a letter to shareholders. “Operationally, our core business is performing well, with stable distribution and non-political advertising revenues year-over-year and strong cost management, resulting in lower year-over-year operating expenses. Additionally, we continued to pursue our network growth strategies as NewsNation was once again the fastest-growing cable network in the quarter, and The CW delivered its sixth consecutive quarter of primetime ratings growth and reduced losses by 24% year-over-year. Looking ahead, we are focused on completing our upcoming distribution renewals and completing our acquisition of TEGNA Inc., and taking advantage of political advertising opportunities ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, which we expect will enhance shareholder value.”