What Happened?
Shares of local television broadcasting and media company Gray Television (NYSE: GTN) jumped 3.7% in the afternoon session after Barrington Research reiterated its "Outperform" rating and a $6.50 price target on the stock.
The analyst pointed to several key factors supporting the positive view. A core part of the rationale was the company's focus on reducing leverage through strategic buys and consolidation, which were expected to streamline operations and cut costs. Gray Television's strong presence in local markets, with top-rated stations in many areas, also positioned it well to capture political advertising sales. This revenue could further help in reducing its debt. Moreover, the firm's transition to the new ATSC 3.0 broadcasting standard was seen as a way to improve advertising and open up new income streams.
Adding to the positive sentiment, the company extended its media rights partnership with the Phoenix Suns and Mercury through 2028.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Gray Television’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 44 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 13 days ago when the stock dropped 3.3% on the news that markets pulled back, reversing early gains, as investor sentiment remained cautious despite a softer-than-expected inflation reading.
Stocks rose in the morning session after an unexpected drop in the Producer Price Index (PPI) for August signaled easing inflation and raised expectations for a potential Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the PPI, which measures wholesale prices, edged down 0.1% the previous month, contrary to analyst expectations for a 0.3% rise. This data gives the Federal Reserve more flexibility to consider lowering interest rates to stimulate the economy.
Gray Television is up 77.3% since the beginning of the year, and at $5.94 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $6.24 from August 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Gray Television’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $438.05.
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