24 Oct 2008

New York Times company posts loss

9:46 am on 24 October 2008

A quarterly loss was posted by the New York Times Co on Thursday amid gloom over the state of print advertising.

The company publishes The New York Times. Its stock fell more than 10% on Thursday to its lowest level since 1991, before closing down 5 cents at $US10.63.

The company said it may write down the value of its New England assets, including The Boston Globe, by $US100- $US150 million.

Its New England properties have already been written down by $US814 million in 2006.

Earlier on Thursday, Moody's Investors Service said it might cut its ratings on the company to junk territory because of revenue declines and risks associated with paying its debt.

That could make it more expensive for the company to borrow money at a time when its ad sales are declining.

However, the company said it still expects to manage its debt obligations. At the end of the quarter, it had $US46 million in cash and about $US1.1 billion in debt.

September revenue fell 8% and group ad revenue dropped 14%. Digital ad revenue also is slowing.

Online ad revenue is not growing quickly enough to offset print declines. At the New York Times, it represents more than 12% of total revenue.