What's Driving TV Ad Spending Strength?

Despite growing pressures from the Internet, TV advertising revenue has bounced back in the past nine months. According to Morgan Stanley analyst Benjamin Swinburne, investors should feel better about the near-term stability of TV advertising.

“The dual threat of a fraying TV bundle and emboldened, consolidated MVPD’s remains enough to keep us Cautious on Media,” Swinburne explained. “But investors should feel better about TV’s place in ad budgets today than they did a year ago – particularly network TV.”

Related Link: Social Media: Where Are Ad Bucks Spent?

He noted that, at this point, Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL)’s YouTube is the biggest threat to TV ad revenue, and Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB)’s streaming video ad efforts are not far enough along yet to be impacting TV budgets.

Drug company TV ad spending has played a major role in the resurgence of TV advertising. Pharma spending was up 20 percent in 2015 and is on pace for similar growth so far in 2016.

Swinburne also anticipates that Procter & Gamble Co (NYSE: PG), the world’s largest advertiser, will ramp-up its ad spending in 2016.

Swinburne says that investors should view the post-earnings selloffs in Twenty-First Century Fox Inc (NASDAQ: FOXA) and CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS) as buying opportunities.

Morgan Stanley has Overweight ratings on Alphabet, Facebook, Twenty-First Century Fox and CBS.

Disclosure: the author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.