Nexstar to Buy Tegna for $6.2 Billion, Adding 265 Local TV Stations

Nexstar Media Group agreed to buy Tegna Inc. for $22 a share in cash, valuing the broadcaster’s equity at about $6.2 billion. Including Tegna’s net debt and estimated transaction costs, the deal carries a total enterprise value of roughly $8.6 billion, according to a joint statement. The transaction would create the nation’s largest owner of local television stations, giving Nexstar and its partners 265 full-power outlets across 44 states and Washington, D.C., and expanding the company’s reach to 80 percent of U.S. TV households. The combined portfolio would include stations in nine of the 10 biggest designated market areas and 41 of the top 50. Nexstar said it expects to fund the purchase entirely with committed debt financing and to generate “significant” cost synergies that will help reduce leverage after the deal closes. The companies forecast completing the acquisition in the second half of 2026, pending approval from the Federal Communications Commission and other regulators. The agreement comes as the FCC, under Chairman Brendan Carr, weighs whether to further relax ownership limits imposed on local broadcasters, a move that could influence the industry’s next wave of consolidation. Rival broadcaster Sinclair Broadcast Group has signaled it may weigh a counteroffer, which could push the price above Nexstar’s current $22-a-share bid.