By: The New York Times Co. reported higher third-quarter earnings Tuesday, bucking an industry trend, on gains in circulation revenue and better-than-expected advertising.
Its shares rose more than 6 percent in early trading.
The company, which also publishes The Boston Globe and the International Herald Tribune, earned $13.4 million in the three months ending Sept. 30, up 6.7 percent from $12.6 million a year earlier. Per-share earnings were flat at 9 cents.
However the company said it expects to save $14 to $16 million in potential buyouts in Q4 adding the range can vary significantly based on seniority and the timing of implementation. New York Times spokeswoman Catherine Mathis said the company has extended buyouts every quarter since 2006 but this one is expected to be higher by about $4 million. She noted the company had larger cost saving reductions in the past.
Earnings from continuing operations, which exclude a group of TV stations that have since been sold, were 10 cents per share versus 6 cents per share a year ago.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had been expecting earnings of 10 cents per share.
Total revenues rose 2 percent to $754.4 million from $739.6 million a year ago and ahead of the $733.6 million that analysts had been expecting.
The company's shares jumped $1.19 or 6.5 percent to $19.60 in morning trading Tuesday.
Circulation revenue rose 3.9 percent in the quarter, following an increase in newsstand and home delivery prices in July. Advertising revenues were essentially flat, slipping 0.1 percent in the quarter -- still a better performance than most other newspaper publishers, which have been reporting declines.
September turned out to be a strong month for the Times, with advertising revenues rising 5.5 percent as a jump in national advertising outweighed declines in retail and classified. The results also included higher advertising from its About.com online information group.
Last week, a dissident shareholder abandoned a campaign to push for changes at The New York Times, including an abolition of the two-tier share structure that allows the Sulzberger family to keep control of the company. Hassan Elmasry, a fund manager for Morgan Stanley, sold his 7.2 percent stake after pressing for the changes for two years.
Most newspaper publishers have been reporting weaker results this period as a downturn in the housing market takes its toll on real estate advertising. Newspapers are also struggling with an ongoing migration of readers and advertising dollars to the Web.
The Times, with its national footprint, tends to benefit more than most other companies from shifts in national advertising. That category rose 10.9 percent in the third quarter on gains from movie studios, financial services and other categories, while retail advertising fell 7.3 percent and classifieds fell 14.4 percent.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here