Head to Head Comparison: Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) vs. Gray Media (NYSE:GTN.A)

Townsquare Media (NYSE:TSQ) and Gray Media (NYSE:GTN.A) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Townsquare Media and Gray Media, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Townsquare Media	0	1	2	0	2.67
Gray Media	0	0	0	0	0.00

Townsquare Media currently has a consensus price target of $17.00, indicating a potential upside of 162.14%. Given Townsquare Media’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Townsquare Media is more favorable than Gray Media.

Risk and Volatility

Townsquare Media has a beta of 1.17, meaning that its share price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gray Media has a beta of 1.1, meaning that its share price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Townsquare Media pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 12.3%. Gray Media pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Townsquare Media pays out 39.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Gray Media pays out 21.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Townsquare Media has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Townsquare Media is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.7% of Townsquare Media shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.3% of Gray Media shares are held by institutional investors. 29.2% of Townsquare Media shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 13.3% of Gray Media shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Townsquare Media and Gray Media’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Townsquare Media	7.93%	-56.87%	3.43%
Gray Media	5.64%	10.31%	2.17%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Townsquare Media and Gray Media”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Townsquare Media	$450.98 million	0.24	-$10.93 million	$2.02	3.21
Gray Media	$3.64 billion	0.26	$375.00 million	$1.51	6.15

Gray Media has higher revenue and earnings than Townsquare Media. Townsquare Media is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Gray Media, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Townsquare Media beats Gray Media on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Townsquare Media

Townsquare Media, Inc. operates as a digital media and marketing solutions company in small and medium-sized businesses. It operates through three segments: Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions, Digital Advertising, and Broadcast Advertising. The Subscription Digital Marketing Solutions segment offers website design, creation, and development, as well as hosting services; and search engine optimization, online directory optimization, e-commerce solutions, online reputation monitoring, social media management, appointment scheduling, payment and invoice, customer management, and email and SMS marketing services. The Digital Advertising segment provides digital advertising on its owned and operated, digital programmatic advertising, and data analytics and management platform. The Broadcast Advertising segment engages in the sale of advertising on local radio stations to local, regional, and national spot advertisers, as well as national network advertisers. It also owns and operates live events, including concerts, expositions, and other experiential events; and operates local media under the WYRK.com, WJON.com, and NJ101.5.com brands, as well as national music under the XXLmag.com, TasteofCountry.com, UltimateClassicRock.com, and Loudwire.com brands. The company was formerly known as Regent Communications, Inc. and changed its name to Townsquare Media, Inc. in May 2010. Townsquare Media, Inc. is headquartered in Purchase, New York.

About Gray Media

Gray Television, Inc., a television broadcast company, owns and operates television stations and digital assets in the United States. As of February 28, 2019, it owned and operated television stations in 91 television markets broadcasting approximately 400 program streams, including approximately 150 channels affiliated with the CBS Network, the NBC Network, the ABC Network, and the FOX Network. The company also broadcasts secondary digital channels affiliated to ABC, CBS, and FOX, as well as channels affiliated with various other networks and program services, including CW Plus Network, MY Network, the MeTV Network, This TV Network, Antenna TV, Telemundo, Cozi, Heroes and Icons, and MOVIES! Network; and local news/weather channels in various markets. In addition, it is also involved in the video program production, marketing, and digital businesses including Raycom Sports, Tupelo-Raycom, and RTM Studios; and production of PowerNation programs and content. The company was formerly known as Gray Communications Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Gray Television, Inc. in August 2002. Gray Television, Inc. was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.