Belo Earns $40.5 Mil. In 2nd Quarter

By: (AP) Belo, owner of The Dallas Morning News, said Wednesday it earned $40.5 million in the second quarter due largely to more advertising on its television stations.

The profit, equal to 36 cents per share, compared to a loss of $315,000 a year earlier.

Revenue rose slightly, to $366 million from $362 million a year earlier.

Belo reported a one-time gain from resolving issues surrounding the sale of a television station and three newspapers in late 2000. Excluding that gain, the company would have earned 34 cents per share.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had expected earnings of 30 cents per share.

Belo's 19 television stations saw revenue rise 4%, helped by spending on political advertisements. Revenue in the newspaper group, which includes four dailies, fell 2%, hurt by weakness in classified employment ads.

"The advertising recovery has definitely begun for our television stations," said Chairman, President, and CEO Robert Decherd. "While newspaper revenues will come back at a slower rate than television revenues, we believe we are seeing the beginning signs of recovery at our newspapers."

Chief Financial Officer Dunia A. Shive said spot revenues at television stations will rise in the low-double digits in July and mid-single digits for August. September results should be strong compared to the drop-off last year after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which led to a loss of about $9 million in revenue that month, Shive said.

In the first six months of the year, Belo earned $57.3 million, or 51 cents per share, compared to $308,000, or less than 1 cent per share, in the same period last year.

Belo shares rose 65 cents to close Wednesday at $19.10 on the New York Stock Exchange.