META
Meta Platforms, Inc.
META has the edge over NXST overall, supported by stronger valuation.
NXST
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
NXST has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
META Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
META's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
NXST Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Weak |
NXST's revenue, profitability and cash flow are currently healthy, but its balance sheet is weak.
META PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 19x | $624 | — |
| Cheap | 21x | $613 | -1.7% |
| Current | 21x | $624 | — |
| Fair | 27x | $803 | +29% |
| Expensive | 32x | $934 | +50% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
META has the edge over NXST in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
NXST PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 7.7x | $84.87 | -59% |
| Forward | 7.9x | $206 | — |
| Fair | 9.5x | $105 | -49% |
| Expensive | 17x | $182 | -11% |
| Current | 19x | $206 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NXST's PE is in its expensive range at 19x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 7.9x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
META Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly weakening | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for META, but weaker profitability. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
NXST Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for NXST, but weaker profitability.
META Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $32.16 | +9.7% |
| Q3 2026 | $29.32 | +30% |
| Q2 2026 | $26.54 | -3.7% |
| Q1 2026 | $27.50 | +7.5% |
| Q4 2025 | $23.49 | -1.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $22.58 | +6.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $27.56 | +41% |
| Q1 2025 | $25.58 | +47% |
| Q4 2024 | $23.86 | +60% |
META has the edge over NXST on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
NXST Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $26.18 | +137% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.05 | -31% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.27 | -72% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.72 | -76% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.00 | -86% |
| Q3 2025 | $16.01 | -7.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $19.14 | +50% |
| Q1 2025 | $19.62 | +66% |
| Q4 2024 | $21.41 | +122% |
NXST's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $11.05 over the past year, against $25.00 in late 2022.
META Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $64.6B | +26% |
| Q2 2026 | $60.8B | +28% |
| Q1 2026 | $56.3B | +33% |
| Q4 2025 | $59.9B | +24% |
| Q3 2025 | $51.2B | +26% |
| Q2 2025 | $47.5B | +22% |
| Q1 2025 | $42.3B | +16% |
| Q4 2024 | $48.4B | +21% |
META has the edge over NXST on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 20% | -20 points |
| Q2 2026 | 31% | -12 points |
| Q1 2026 | 41% | -0.9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 41% | -7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 40% | -2.7 points |
| Q2 2025 | 43% | +5 points |
| Q1 2025 | 41% | +3.6 points |
| Q4 2024 | 48% | +7.4 points |
META's operating margin was 20% last quarter, down 20 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom of its range since 2019.
NXST Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $2.1B | +78% |
| Q2 2026 | $2B | +62% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.4B | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.3B | -13% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.2B | -12% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.2B | -3.2% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | -3.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | +14% |
NXST's revenue has picked up after four years of holding roughly level: $2.1B last quarter, up 78% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 25% | +10 points |
| Q2 2026 | 18% | +0.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 19% | +1.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 19% | -9.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 15% | -9.9 points |
| Q2 2025 | 17% | -1.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 18% | -3.6 points |
| Q4 2024 | 28% | +10 points |
NXST has the edge over META on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
META Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$1.2B | -110% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.7B | -81% |
| Q1 2026 | $13.2B | +19% |
| Q4 2025 | $14.8B | +9.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.2B | -32% |
| Q2 2025 | $9B | -19% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.1B | -14% |
| Q4 2024 | $13.6B | +16% |
META usually generates cash, though not every quarter: the latest was −$1.2B, but it generated $28.6B over the past year.
NXST Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $634M | +629% |
| Q2 2026 | $253M | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $267M | -12% |
| Q4 2025 | $136M | -64% |
| Q3 2025 | $87M | -76% |
| Q2 2025 | $218M | +57% |
| Q1 2025 | $302M | +30% |
| Q4 2024 | $376M | +158% |
NXST has the edge over META on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
META Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.3% | +7M shares |
| 1 year | 0% | +1M shares |
| 3 years | -2.6% | -68M shares |
| 5 years | -10% | -286M shares |
| Available history | -11% | -303M shares |
META has the edge over NXST on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | $3.3B |
| Q2 2025 | $10.2B |
| Q1 2025 | $12.8B |
| Q4 2024 | — |
META hasn't bought back shares in the past year.
NXST Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.3% | +105K shares |
| 1 year | +1.2% | +364K shares |
| 3 years | -12% | -4.4M shares |
| 5 years | -29% | -12.5M shares |
| Available history | -35% | -16.9M shares |
NXST has 31M diluted shares, up 1.2% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $50M |
| Q1 2025 | $75M |
| Q4 2024 | $178M |
| Q3 2024 | $177M |
| Q2 2024 | $135M |
| Q1 2024 | $111M |
META Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.0x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
META has the edge over NXST on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
NXST Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 6.4x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 8.3x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 9.2x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 4.6x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 3.3x | Elevated |
| Q2 2025 | 3.1x | Elevated |
| Q1 2025 | 3.1x | Elevated |
| Q4 2024 | 3.1x | Elevated |
NXST's net debt is about 6.4 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 3.3 years a year ago.
META Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 48.2 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 33.7 | Neutral |
META's weekly RSI is 48 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 34 (neutral).
NXST Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 62.8 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 69.7 | Neutral |
NXST's weekly RSI is 63 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 70 (neutral).
META PE vs Communication Services Sector
| Metric | META | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 21x | 16x | 29% above |
| PE % | 18 | 26 | 8 pts below |
META is trading at 21x earnings, a 29% premium to the Communication Services sector's median of 16x.
NXST PE vs Communication Services Sector
| Metric | NXST | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 19x | 16x | 13% above |
| PE % | 86 | 26 | 60 pts above |
NXST has the edge over META on valuation relative to its sector.
META Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $674.9 | 7.6% below |
| 20 week MA | $634.5 | 1.7% below |
| 50 week MA | $630.8 | 1.1% below |
| 100 week MA | $647.8 | 3.7% below |
| 200 week MA | $517.5 | 21% above |
META has fallen below most of its moving averages, though it's still 21% above its 200-week average.
NXST Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $172.3 | 20% above |
| 20 week MA | $177.3 | 16% above |
| 50 week MA | $193.7 | 6.4% above |
| 100 week MA | $184.9 | 11% above |
| 200 week MA | $175.2 | 18% above |
NXST has the edge over META on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
META Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $208.1 | $267.4 | +28% |
| 2021 | $267.4 | $335.2 | +25% |
| 2022 | $335.2 | $118.0 | -65% |
| 2023 | $118.0 | $354.0 | +200% |
| 2024 | $354.0 | $599.8 | +69% |
| 2025 | $599.8 | $663.3 | +11% |
| 2026 YTD | $663.3 | $623.6 | -6% |
META's yearly returns have swung widely, from +200% in 2023 to −65% in 2022. It's down 6% so far in 2026.
NXST Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $118.2 | $105.0 | -11% |
| 2021 | $105.0 | $152.8 | +45% |
| 2022 | $152.8 | $176.0 | +15% |
| 2023 | $176.0 | $156.8 | -11% |
| 2024 | $156.8 | $159.1 | +1.5% |
| 2025 | $159.1 | $205.0 | +29% |
| 2026 YTD | $205.0 | $206.0 | +0.5% |
NXST has the edge over META on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.