• by Wayne Friedman , January 1, 2020

Media companies -- both traditional and digital -- witnessed strong mid-30% average hikes in their 2019 stock prices, with Roku, The Trade Desk, Charter Communications, and Facebook posting some of the biggest percentage increases.

The Dow Jones U.S. Broadcasting & Entertainment index was up 31% to 1,592. The Dow Jones U.S. Media Index rose 30% to 1,062.

These results were similar on average to the broader market indices: Dow Jones Industrials -- 22% more this year to 28,538; S&P 500 adding 29% to 3,230; and Nasdaq, 35% higher to 8,972.

Roku, the set-top box/smart TV platform of TV/video networks, posted the best results for any media company, more than tripling its stock price -- up 337% to $133.90.

Big digital media companies -- so called FAANG stocks -- continue to see generally better-than-market gains. Facebook rose 57% to $205.25, while Amazon was 23% higher to $1,847 and Apple was up 86% to $293.65. Netflix rose 21% more to $323.57, and Google (Alphabet), grew 28% to $1,339.

Looking at legacy media companies, Walt Disney was up 32% to $144.63, while Discovery was 32% higher to $32.68 and Comcast Corp. grew 32% to $45.92. Among TV station groups, Nexstar Media Group added a big 49% to $117.25, while Sinclair Broadcast Group was up 27% to $33.34 and Tegna added 54% more to $16.69.

Charter Communications posted record gains for a pay TV network/broadband service company --  gaining a massive 70% to $485.08. Pay TV provider Dish Network also witnessed soaring improvements -- 43% more to $35.47.

Advertising technology had a big year: Trade Desk, the advertiser demand-side platform (DSP), grew a big 124% to $259.78. Telaria, a seller-side platform (SSP) posted a 223% rose to $8.81. Another SSP, Rubicon Project, was up 119% to $8.16. Rubicon and Telaria agreed to merge in late 2019.

On the losing end of things: AMC Networks was down 28% to $39.50, while ComScore sank 66% to $4.94, Nielsen Holdings was down 13% to $20.30 and ViacomCBS slipped 4% to $41.97.