October was a good month for many ASX media and communication shares, but some performed better than others.
Not to spoil the surprise, but the media stocks that outperformed their peers probably aren't the ones you are expecting…
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The 5 top performing ASX media shares of October
A quick note; this list only includes shares with market capitalisations of more than $100 million.
Enero Group Ltd (ASX: EGG)
The Enero share price has outperformed those of all its ASX media and communications-focused peers.
Through the month of October, it gained 30.69% to finish at $3.96.
Last month, Enero announced the September quarter had seen it with 22.6% more revenue and 50% more earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) than the same quarter of financial year 2021.
The company operates a number of brands in the communications and marketing spheres.
HT&E Ltd (ASX: HT1)
Coming in second best is HT&E, also known as Here, There & Everywhere.
The radio, audio, and digital content business saw its share price grow by 17.68% over the course of October to finish the month's final session at $1.93.
The big news from HT&E last month was the settlement of a longstanding taxation dispute with the Australian Taxation Office.
IVE Group Ltd (ASX: IGL)
The IVE Group share price had a great October on the ASX. It gained 16.23% to end the period at $1.79.
The print and marketing company's stock was boosted by news of 2 acquisitions, both expanding IVE's retail display operations.
Gtn Ltd (ASX: GTN)
The Gtn share price also outperformed many of its peers over October, gaining 14.13% to finish at 52.5 cents.
Gtn – Global Traffic Network – provides traffic reports to radio stations in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Brazil. As compensation for supplying such reports, Gtn is generally given advertising slots. It then bundles and sells the slots to other parties.
There was no word from the company to explain its stock's surge last month.
NZME Ltd (ASX: NZM)
Finally, the crown for the fifth best performing media share of the month of October goes to NZME – New Zealand Media and Entertainment.
The company operates more than 50 print, radio, and digital media brands.
The NZME share price gained 13.27% over October. It finished the month trading at $1.11.
There were a number of announcements from NZME over October.
First, it updated the market on the impacts it was facing as COVID-19-induced lockdowns continued in New Zealand. The company's advertising revenue was hit by the lockdown. However, it remained 7% higher than during the prior corresponding period. The company also provided EBITDA guidance for the 2021 calendar year.
It later completed the sale of its GrabOne business.
