Maybe it's too early to talk about what McClatchy will do in the 3rd quarter, since the company hasn't announced 2nd quarter results yet. But a reader has looked down the road and here is what he sees for McClatchy:
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Look for more consolidation at all the MNI properties in this quarter.
Look for more prices increases at papers that did not increase prices the first six months of 2009 and look for more sections to be combined within sections.
Look for more building consolidation this quarter as newspapers try to bring all their outlying advertising locations closer to the main building.
Look for more creative ways to deliver the product via outsourcing carrier delivery in some fashion and look for more consolidation of rural deliveries from seven days a week to one day a week .
Look for more outsourcing of finance, HR, and IT staff to either local companies or global companies that have contracts with MNI.
Look for more push of online content and websites being tweaked to make it easier to navigate.
Would not be shocked if some of these steps were discussed last month as MNI papers were looking at their 2nd quarter numbers.
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4 comments:
OK, With all the "Look fors" can we just cut to the chase here?
Look for...
Look for...
Look for...
Look for...
Look for...
Look for...CHAPTER 11
Look for more screw-ups like what happened at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram last week. The same comics page was preprinted on two pages. Good grief, Charlie Brown, I mean Gary Wortel. The paper's solution: Put in a readers note and print the second comics page in the already-decimated local news section, right next to one of the obit pages. Ever since he became publisher a year and a half ago Wortel has been happily cutting staff; cutting pages, wages and benefits; and selling off assets to boost the paper's profits even more, which are probably in the $30 million to $50 million range. This comics page blunder, possibly a first at the paper, would have never happened if staffing levels in prepress through the pressroom were at proper levels. Heckuva job, Brownie, I mean Wortele:)
From McClatchy Watch Earlier this year.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
What are you hearing about the $100 million to $110 million in cuts?? (bumped)
McClatchy says it will make $100 million to $110 million in cuts but didn't announce what form the cuts will take -- other than freezing pension payments and halting matching contributions to its 401k plan.
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“The result was to slash another 1,600 jobs .”
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Look for another round of layoffs at McClatchy in June... company is on verge of violating debt covenants
Despite well-publicized cost-cutting measures taken last month (1,600 layoffs, wage cuts for remaining employees, mandated furloughs for many employees, and suspension of matching retirement contributions), a look at revenue projections and McClatchy's debt requirements shows McClatchy may be on the verge of violating debt covenants by June 30 -- which could trigger another round of layoffs and a sell-off of major assets.
On the revenue side, McClatchy's revenue is declining at a 20% clip. One year ago, sales for the March 2008 quarter were $488 million. They are estimated at around $390 million for the current quarter. That is a massive drop of $100 million -- about 20% -- for the quarter compared to last year. Revenue for the current quarter is down 20%. Given the recession and the decline across the newspaper industry, experts see no hope in the near term: Alan Mutter says newspapers will see a 17% drop for the rest of 2009.
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“No major announcement were made in June pending the results of the quarter and the failed debt swap”.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Ruh roh!... analysts expect Gannett will report second quarter revenue down 32%... a sign of things to come for McClatchy?
Jennifer Saba says analysts expect Gannett will report a big advertising plunge for the second quarter:
Signs of a turnaround in Q2 are highly unlikely for the Gannett Co., wrote J.P. Morgan analysts Alexia Quadrani and Monica DiCenso in a note issued this afternoon.
The analysts are anticipating another "weak quarter" for the McLean, Va.-based company when it releases its earnings on July 15. J.P. Morgan forecasts that newspaper advertising revenue at Gannett fell 32% in Q2. "Severe revenue declines" are expected at USA Today."
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“We know the end results was that Gannett beat the street prediction by .08 a share and still slashaed another 1,400 jobs to keep costs down”.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Gulp!... McClatchy says its 1st quarter revenues were down 25% from a year ago (updated)
McClatchy said today its 1st quarter revenues were $365.6 million, down a whopping 25% from a year ago.
The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI) today reported a net loss from continuing operations in the first quarter of 2009 of $37.7 million, or 45 cents per share. Adjusted for certain items, (1) the loss from continuing operations was $22.9 million, or 28 cents.
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Alan Mutter says newspapers will see a 17% drop for the rest of 2009.
Gannett Q2 revenue was down 32%
McClatchy says its 1st quarter revenues were down 25%
The key buzz words will be:
“continued online growth in Q2”.
“will continue to find aggressive ways to cut cost”.
“some revenue was generated (via price increases)”.
"we see some light at the end of the tunnel, that shows a turnaround, we just can't predict when or where it will happen".
Tomorrow will see lots of tap dancing around the whole issues of chapter 11 filing, debt, and deals still in the works.
At the FW Star-Telegram, it's the case of Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Gary Wortel and Jim Witt make a beautiful pair.
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