Gannett revenue rises, profit beats forecast
Gannett and USA TODAY headquarters in McLean, Va.(Photo: Jacquelyn Martin, AP)
Gannett, the media and marketing company that owns USA TODAY, said Monday that
greater broadcasting and digital ad sales drove its revenue higher, and reported fourth-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street expectations.
The company, based in McLean, Va., said it earned $103.1 million, or 44 cents per diluted share, in the quarter, vs. $116.9 million, or 49 cents, a year earlier. Excluding special items, the company said fourth-quarter profit amounted to 89 cents a share vs. 72 cents a year earlier, up 23.6%. Wall Street had expected 88 cents.
Net operating revenue totaled $1.52 billion, vs. $1.39 billion in the 2011 quarter.
Shares of Gannett closed Monday at $18.51, down $1.33, or 6.7%.
"For the year, we achieved our first year-over-year increase in companywide revenue since 2006," Gannett CEO Gracia Martore said. "During the fourth quarter and for the full year, our broadcasting business delivered record revenue and profitability."
Local publishing circulation revenue in the U.S. also increased for the third-consecutive quarter, she said.
For all 2012, Gannett earned $1.79 per diluted share, vs. $1.89 in 2011. Revenue rose 2.2% to $5.35 billion.
Quarterly operating revenue for the publishing unit - the company's largest business segment - rose 3.7% to $1.04 billion. Higher circulation revenue - up 16.8% - stemming from the rollout of the "all access content subscription model" helped offset a decline in advertising revenue. Advertising revenue fell to $657.5 million from $670.7 million in the fourth quarter a year earlier.
Benefiting from higher political ad spending, the broadcasting unit's operating revenue jumped 43.9% to $287.5 million in the quarter. Television revenue totaled $280.2 million, a 45.7% increase.
Largely due to growth at employment website CareerBuilder, operating revenue for the digital unit increased to $187.2 million from $181.5 million a year earlier, the company said. Digital revenue companywide, including the digital unit and all digital revenue generated by other business segments, totaled $375.6 million, up 29.4% from a year earlier. Digital revenue now makes up 25% of the company's total revenue.
At the end of the quarter, Gannett had about 120 domestic websites affiliated with its local publishing and television markets, USA TODAY, Gannett Government Media and Gannett Healthcare Group.