The media sector offers some distinctly different investment options. Newsmax (NMAX -1.47%) entered the stock market as recently as March 2025, and the largely digital provider of conservative news coverage has only one quarterly earnings report under its belt. By contrast, The New York Times Company (NYT 0.77%) was founded in 1851 and entered the public stock market 56 years ago.

You can look at this matchup as a political struggle, but I’m more interested in their business models. Which media stock operates from the stronger financial foundation, setting shareholders up for better long-term returns?

Newsmax and The New York Times, by the numbers

Both companies recently published their results for the period ending on June 30, 2025. Let’s see how they stack up.

Newsmax posted strong top-line growth. Its second-quarter sales rose 18.4% year over year, landing at $46.4 million. The company reached 26 million cable news viewers in this quarter.

With $198 million of cash equivalents and no long-term debt to speak of, Newsmax’s balance sheet looks robust at first glance. However, its bottom-line profits are consistently negative, and the cash balance was built on $426.6 million of additional paid-in capital — financial backing provided by founder Christopher Ruddy and the stock offering in March.

Investors should watch how this shareholder-backed company manages its return on equity in the long run. It’s a negative number for now, even if you back out a $68.4 million legal expense from Newsmax’s expenses.

New York Times saw a slower 9.7% revenue increase in the same reporting period, as expected from a more mature company. Revenue landed at $685.9 million, with 51% coming from digital-only subscription sales. Net income rose 26.6% to $82.9 million, while free cash flow fell 30% year over year to $72.6 million.

New York Times’ cash balance stood at $951.5 million by the end of June. Like Newsmax, this company doesn’t carry any long-term debt. Once again, return on equity is an important financial metric to watch, with the current value perched at 17.1%.

Long story short, The New York Times is an older and larger business with slower growth but robust profits. The return-on-equity figures weigh heavily in the larger company’s favor at this point, due to Newsmax’s unprofitable operations.

Image source: Getty Images.

The stock performance scorecard

That brings me over from financial statements to the stocks themselves.

Newsmax shares are trading 94% below their all-time high, which was set amid the frenzied market action on the IPO date. Skipping ahead to calmer times, the three-month return as of August 26 is a negative 29.7%.

Profit-based valuation metrics don’t make sense for this stock yet, and Newsmax hasn’t reported a full year of revenue figures, so it’s hard to pin a reasonable market value on the stock. For what it’s worth, Newsmax trades at 18.5x the company’s book value and 10x its net cash balance.

New York Times investors pocketed a 7.8% total return in the last three months and a market-beating 92.5% in three years. Neither a market darling nor a bargain, the stock trades at a modest 30.7x trailing earnings and 21.3x free cash flow.

It’s a mixed bag if you compare the two stocks on the metrics that actually apply to Newsmax. The New York Times stock trades at 5x book value and 18x its cash reserves.

Boring beats volatile in this media matchup

Newsmax is still finding its bearings on the public market. The stock has been volatile in the first few months, and the company’s main revenue source is the unpredictable flow of advertising sales.

The New York Times has been around forever and runs a more robust business model with more subscription revenue than ad sales. The stock isn’t exactly cheap, but its valuation isn’t terribly lofty, either.

For better or worse, many people might pick either one of these stocks to match their political leanings. That’s fine, as long as you keep the investment on the small side.

Emotional investing is rarely a recipe for strong returns. If you turn down the adrenaline spigot, The New York Times looks like a modestly priced value stock, while Newsmax seems too hot to handle in 2025.