Projo’s Parent Company Gannett Saw 26.9% Print Adv Loss, Circulation Revenue Down 13.6% in Q4
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Gannett -- the mega newspaper company which owns hundreds of daily newspapers across the United States and locally owns the Providence Journal, Newport Daily News, Worcester Telegram and dozens of other newspapers in New England -- announced its latest financial results on Thursday morning.
Under Gannett's ownership the Providence Journal has seen major staffing cuts and the paper's circulation during the weekday in now under 30,000.
The company announced that circulation, advertising and digital advertising all saw losses. Print advertising revenues saw a 26.9% loss year over year for the "same stores."
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"We are making significant progress on our transition from a traditional media business to a digitally focused content platform, having already surpassed one million digital subscribers. We are committed to becoming a subscription-led business that drives audience growth and engagement by delivering deeper content experiences to our consumers and offering the products and marketing expertise our business partners desire," added Reed.
In the fourth quarter 2020 publishing segment Gannett reported:
- Same store pro forma circulation revenues decreased 13.6% in the fourth quarter, primarily driven by single copy sales, reflecting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses that buy and sell copies of our publications, and the overall secular declines in the volume of home delivery due to subscriber declines.
- Print advertising revenues totaled $237.6 million in the fourth quarter, reflecting continued secular pressures.
- Same store pro forma print advertising revenues decreased 26.9% compared to the prior year fourth quarter, a 400 basis point improvement over the third quarter of 2020, reflecting secular industry trends and the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on all categories.
- Digital advertising and marketing services revenues were $146.5 million in the fourth quarter.
- Same store pro forma digital advertising and marketing services revenues decreased 2.0% versus the same period in the prior year, an improvement from the 13.5% year-over-year decline we experienced in the third quarter of 2020.
- Digital-only subscriptions totaled approximately 1.1 million at the end of the fourth quarter, up 29% year-over-year.
The company also reported tens of millions in more cuts, layoffs, and buyouts. “Realized $61 million in savings in the fourth quarter, bringing our total 2020 integration savings to approximately $177 million. "On an annualized basis, that will result in over $245 million of ongoing savings. Management remains confident in its ability to implement additional measures by the end of 2021 that are expected to result in over $300 million in aggregate annualized synergies," said the company.
