More Gannett bad news: Profits down 53 percent

2muchcoffeeman · Oct 19, 2009

And earnings per share dropped 38 cents a share from the same quarter of 2008. Also, publishing division ad sales dropped 28 percent from the same quarter a year ago.

Gannettoids are trying to spin this as good news because (and I quote here for laughs): "We finished the quarter on a stronger note with better than anticipated results due primarily to better trends in advertising and greater efficiencies across all of our business segments. Our results for the quarter exceeded the high end of previously announced estimate ranges for revenue, operating cash flow, and earnings per share."

Based on the preceding line of bull by-product, GCI stock is now up just over a dollar per share (at this moment).

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Gannett-Co-Inc-Reports-Third-bw-2354832054.html?x=0&.v=1

Starting at the middle of that release and below, it hemorrhages red ink. Digital revenue is up, but it really couldn't have gone anywhere else.

Ace · Oct 19, 2009

Hey, if BS and specious arguments make the stock go up and put off more blood-letting, why complain?

mustangj17 · Oct 19, 2009

Small good news for Gannett.
Employees can carry over five vacation days to next year.

Mediator · Oct 19, 2009

And your PTSD? Will that carry over as well?

pressmurphy · Oct 19, 2009

Read the numbers carefully and you'll see that some of the revenue from last year's comparable quarter was political and Olympics advertising that obviously isn't happening this year. Back those numbers out and you see that the ad revenue was respectable, all things considered, and that the y-o-y drop-offs are getting smaller each quarter.

GCI still has a ways to go, but even a serial Gannett hater like me recognizes that they had an OK quarter financially.

That being said, they still treat their people like ****. But that's a conversation for another day.