Chris Forgy has a one-line mission statement for Saga Communications right now: execute and monetize what’s already built. The President and CEO used the phrase twice on the broadcaster’s Q2 earnings call, framing a quarter of asset sales and digital growth.
As Forgy said, echoing previous calls, “We’re remodeling a house while we’re still living in the house. Along the way on this renovation project, we’ve had to relocate a few walls here and there, and we’ve had to change out a framing crew or two. We’ve improved our supply chains and even upgraded our remodeling products we use.”
Much of that remodel has to do with Saga’s “blended” digital strategy, which grew 76.4% year over year for the six months ended June 30, and now makes up 19% of gross revenue. The broadcaster brought its search function in-house with three full-time specialists, hired nine sales managers across nine markets, and trained 10 digital campaign managers during the quarter. The promotion of Paul O’Malley from Charleston General Manager to Senior Vice President of Revenue Development was also discussed.
CFO Sam Bush said those moves are already helping improve monthly pacing heading into the fourth quarter.
As for Q2, the blend ultimately helped Saga report net income of $960,000, though that dropped from $1.12 million in the same period of 2025. Revenue was $26.4 million, down 6.5% year-over-year. Station operating expense increased 5.4% for the quarter, or 3.9% excluding a non-cash tower rent expense tied to an October 2025 tower sale. That sale generated $10.5 million in cash and allowed Saga to defer taxes on the transaction’s gain over a 25-year lease term.
Similar sales are likely to continue, including the divestitures of what company leaders call “non-core properties.” During the call, Saga divulged the $1.7 million sale of its former Sarasota house, which famously drew the ire of some investors in 2025.
Midterms also worked in Forgy’s favor, as gross political revenue came in around $450,000 for the quarter, with an additional $1.1 million in political revenue already sold for the remainder of 2026.
Saga’s cash and short-term investments totaled $27.8 million as of June 30, then dropped to $22.9 million by August 10 after the company repaid a $5 million balance on its revolving credit line. Saga then ended that credit agreement, saying it wanted more flexibility to spend cash on dividends, share buybacks, digital investment, and capital projects. Capital expenditures totaled $1.3 million for the quarter, and the company expects to spend $3 million to $3.5 million on capital projects by December 31.
