sinclair broadcast group inc. said chief executive david smith is stepping down, as the television broadcaster reported that third-quarter earnings rose 18% on revenue growth that topped its lowered outlook. <u+201c>with one week remaining in the political election year, we have been pleasantly surprised by the recent momentum in political ad spending from both sides,<u+201d> chief operating officer david amy said in prepared remarks. in september, sinclair lowered its third-quarter forecast because of lower-than-expected spending on presidential advertising. at that time, sinclair withdrew its political advertising projection of $260 million to $280 million for the year, citing the <u+201c>unusual nature<u+201d> of this year<u+2019>s presidential election, in which republican candidate donald trump had been limiting his use of television advertising. sinclair said then that it had yet to see significant advertising spending on the race. wednesday, sinclair provided political revenue guidance for 2016, saying it now expects political spending of $206 million to $216 million. sinclair also named chief financial officer christopher ripley as its successor to mr. smith, who will remain on as executive chairman. in that role mr. smith will have oversight over sinclair<u+2019>s development of its next-generation platform and expansion of its news franchise while mr. ripley will be responsible for the company<u+2019>s business and operations. over all, sinclair reported a profit of $50.8 million, or 54 cents a share, up from $43.3 million, or 45 cents a share, a year earlier. the latest period included debt-extinguishment losses that reduced earnings by 16 cents a share. revenue increased 27% to $693.8 million. analysts polled by thomson reuters expected per-share profit of 72 cents and revenue of $691.1 million. write to tess stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
sinclair ceo steps down as earnings rise  - wsj
tess stynes