Posted on 06/08/2004 8:30:53 AM PDT by Grampa Dave
Tribune falls after warning, downgrade
By Russ Britt, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 11:01 AM ET June 8, 2004
LOS ANGELES (CBS.MW) -- Shares of Tribune Co. dropped 4 percent Tuesday in the wake of the newspaper publisher's warning on sales projections and a downgrade from a Wall Street analyst.
Chicago-based Tribune (TRB: news, chart, profile) fell $1.88 to $46.80 after the company said Monday it expects sales growth to be slower than expected within its publishing group and will have to take a $10 million to $15 million charge in the second quarter to make up for it.
That prompted A.G. Edwards analyst Michael Kupinski to downgrade Tribune stock to "hold" from "buy." Kupinski said, however, that Tribune's downside should be "limited."
"In our view, the likely catalyst toward higher stock valuations will be positive earnings surprises and sequential growth in quarterly revenues," Kupinski wrote in a note issued Tuesday. "Patient investors willing to wait an upturn in revenue growth at the company, which appears possible in a favorable economic environment, are encouraged to retain positions."
The publisher of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune said it will take the charge because it is reducing expense growth from 5.5 percent down to 3 percent. Tribune officials said, however, they still expect to fall within analyst estimates for the quarter.
Tribune is cutting 200 staff positions, undertaking newsprint conservation programs and reducing spending in all departments. Company officials said the growth plans that existed earlier in the year weren't meeting expectations.
"Although help wanted advertising is improving month-over-month, and preprints year-to-date are delivering strong growth, other advertising categories are not meeting the aggressive plans we had for the year," Jack Fuller, president of Tribune Publishing, said in a statement. "The shortfall is limited to a few newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times."
Tribune expects sales growth of roughly 4 percent for the full year.
The company put out its warning as it announced sales were up 3.2 percent for a roughly monthlong period ended May 23.
Russ Britt is the Los Angeles Bureau Chief for CBS.MarketWatch.com.
If Kerry didn't have his loyal mediots in control of most of the media, he would never be in the news. He is not news, and they know it.
Now you are worrying me.
Dead fish might vote as rats this November? :)
Thanks for the laugh.
The free market punishes sloppy work.
Cracks appear in the liberal monolith. FR contributes to the inevitable decline of elite media.
Morning in America, indeed.
100 Tribune-Owned Los Angeles Times Staff Positions will also be eliminated.
You are welcome.
Probably 98% of Freepers reading this thread are laughing and have a big smile on their face.
On the west coast they own what is arguably the worst newspaper in the country, the L.A. Times.
You are right on target with these these comments:
The free market punishes sloppy work.
Cracks appear in the liberal monolith. FR contributes to the inevitable decline of elite media.
Especially in the inner cities where Repubies dare not tread. Kind of stinks eh?LOL
The Trib and the mass votes of the dead have insured the Rat control of Chicago for most of the last century and this century.
The Gorhoid Inner Cities are controlled by left wingers, who use left wing fish wraps and their dead to win control each election. I don't see anyway to break that control up.
All of the Chicago papers are not worthy of fish wrap.
The Chicago LIBune and the Daily Southtown are both DemoRAT rags!
This is beyond self-fulfilling prophesy; it's self-fulfilling policy.
Help wanted advertising is improving....hmmmm....sounds like the press should be covering this story. : )
Thanks for posting this Grampa D!
The Chicago Tribune was a great conservative publication when I was growing up in Chicago, and turned into liberal trash about 15 years ago.
Couple that with an over-hyped 91+Million dollar a year ball club and you're seeing the result on Wall Street today. And their WGN and CLTV is also second rate at best.
But the Chicago Tribune is easily the worst of all their products, total garbage.
This is the beginning of the end of Old Media.
FYI, They've taken control of the entire state of Illinois, controlling the excutive and both houses in the state legislature.
And President Bush and Speaker Hastert only pay homage to these dems and pore huge federal dollars into the stinkin' scialist state. For 30 years Illinois has routinely gotten $1.30+ back from the feds for every dollar sent to DC.
The three largest employers in the state since the 1980s are the federal, state and Chicago governments. Jewel (a food store is always a distant fourth.
Illinois used to be a proud, economically strongly diverse state, now it relies almost solely on federal monies.
"The policies advocated by both papers have assured that most of their constituency can't read and don't have the money to buy what is advertised."
"This is beyond self-fulfilling prophesy; it's self-fulfilling policy."
I have been saying this for years. That the pro abortion, pro drugs, pro ebonics, pro NEA and pro dumbing down of the inner cities agendas are reducing the power of the libs and their buddies the mediots.
This is another reason why left wing talk radio shows have such a short half life. Their targeted audiences don't have the mental ability to listen to discussion. They can only respond to 5 to 10 word mantras.
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