Paramount Global Put on Negative Credit Watch Amid Weak Cash Flows

Independent credit rating agency S&P Global has placed Paramount Global—the media conglomerate that owns CBS, Nickelodeon, MTV, and Showtime, among other major broadcasting networks—on a “credit watch negative,” citing a weak operating cash flow generation. This follows the company’s move away from traditional cable television and toward a “lower margin” streaming model. “We believe FOCF [free operating cash flow] will be weaker than historical levels because the significant cash flows from the linear TV businesses will degrade rapidly as pay-TV subscribers continue to decline and advertisers migrate spending to streaming platforms,” said the rating disclosure report, which was released on Feb. 23....