Newspaper Publisher Gannett Posts 60% Drop in Q1 Profits

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 16, 2009 - 8:12am.

McLean, Va. - In the latest example of just how far the newspaper industry has fallen, Gannett (NYSE: GCI), the publisher of USA Today and 84 other daily papers, on Thursday reported a 60% drop in its first-quarter profits.

Wracked by a particularly weak advertising market, the company said that its net income fell to $77.4 million for the quarter ended Jan. 31, down from $191.8 million the prior year.

Revenue fell 18% to 1.4 billion, as classified ad revenue plunged 47%.

"Our results reflect the pressure on advertising demand across all of our business segments due to continuing recessions in the U.S. and the U.K.," said Craig Dubow, the company's chairman, president and CEO.

Still the company's per share earnings of $0.25 beat consensus analyst estimates by a penny, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

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