E.W. SCRIPPS Co (SSP) — payout ratio, three ways
Fiscal year ending 2023-12-31 · sector Communications · payout ratios computed from SEC filings, not taken from a data vendor.
| Basis | Payout | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | negative | The company lost $11.84 per share, so there are no earnings to pay a dividend out of and no ratio exists. |
| Operating cash flow | 43.0% | Before capital spending, so it understates the payout that free cash flow shows. |
| Free cash flow | 92.3% | What is left after maintaining the business. |
Spread between highest and lowest: 49 percentage points. Same filings, different denominators.
Coverage rating 4 / 100 — Not covered. ? Peer standing 4/50Direction 0/30Stability 0/20
Free cash flow payout, last 5 years
| Fiscal year | Payout |
|---|---|
| 2023-12-31 | 92.3% |
| 2022-12-31 | 18.1% |
| 2021-12-31 | 25.6% |
| 2020-12-31 | 7.1% |
| 2018-12-31 | 17.5% |
Coverage worsened sharply this year, 18.1% to 92.3%, after no clear trend before it. One year is not a trend, but it is worth knowing which direction the last one moved.
Among the 27 communications companies here, only 7% pay out a larger share on this basis — this is at the demanding end.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $0.57 ÷ diluted EPS $-11.84
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $48.0m ÷ operating cash flow $111.6m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $48.0m ÷ (operating cash flow $111.6m − capex $59.6m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2026-02-27 · accession
0000832428-26-000010 - 10-K filed 2025-03-12 · accession
0000832428-25-000012 - 10-K filed 2024-02-23 · accession
0000832428-24-000015
Every one is public at sec.gov and free to check. That is the point — you should not have to take my word for any of it.
Caveats on this company
- DPS derived from dividends paid ($0.57); no per-share tag filed
Computed by an open pipeline reading SEC XBRL directly. If any number here looks wrong to you, tell me — that is more useful to me than agreement.