MEXICO CITY – Mexican media powerhouse Grupo Televisa experienced its steepest stock decline of the year Friday after announcing it would halt dividend payments for 2026 while pursuing new telecommunications ventures.
The broadcasting giant’s shares plummeted 7.5%, erasing 2.1 billion pesos (approximately $122 million) from its market value following the dividend suspension announcement.
“Considering several opportunities in the telecom sector in Mexico that we’re currently exploring, our Board of Directors approved suspending the payment of our regular dividend in 2026,” Francisco Valim, CEO of Televisa’s Cable and Sky division, explained during an analyst conference call.
Company leadership confirmed they are actively pursuing telecommunications sector investments but declined to provide additional details about specific opportunities under consideration.
Valim projected that Televisa’s capital expenditure-to-sales ratio will reach approximately 25% in 2026.
The dividend cancellation comes on the heels of disappointing fourth-quarter financial results released Thursday. The world’s top producer of Spanish-language programming reported a narrowed net loss of 7.68 billion pesos (roughly $808 million) for the final quarter, falling short of analyst predictions who had anticipated a modest profit of $1.52 million.
Santander analysts characterized Televisa’s performance as showing “challenging top-line growth trends but with a continued improvement in profitability levels.”
The media conglomerate hasn’t recorded an annual profit since 2022. Both 2023 and 2024 saw the company post yearly losses exceeding 8 billion pesos.
