PTZ Pulitzer

Pulitzer Inc. Reports Tenth-Period Revenue for Five Weeks Ended November 2, 2003 ST. LOUIS, Nov. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pulitzer Inc. today announced that revenues increased 3.6 percent for the five-week accounting period ended November 2, 2003 and increased 0.7 percent for the 44-week year-to-date period when compared to the respective 2002 periods. October 2003 advertising revenue in St. Louis and at the 12 Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc. ("PNI") markets increased 6.4 percent versus last year, with increases of 5.9 percent at the combined St. Louis operations and 7.6 percent at PNI. On a comparable basis, excluding the results of 2003 PNI acquisitions absent in 2002, total comparable revenue increased 2.9 percent for the five-week period ended November 2, 2003 and increased 0.5 percent for the 44-week year-to-date period. Total comparable advertising revenue increased 5.6 percent for the five-week period ended November 2, 2003 and increased 1.1 percent for the 44-week year-to-date period. October 2003 comparable advertising revenue increased 5.9 percent at the combined St. Louis operations and 4.8 percent at PNI. The principal components of the tenth-period comparable advertising revenue results were: -- Comparable retail advertising revenue, including preprints, increased 5.5 percent. Comparable retail ROP increased 3.4 percent, principally due to strength in the grocery store, electronics, healthcare and financial categories, as well as gains in local territory revenue, which increased 10.8 percent in St. Louis, partially offset by weakness in the department store, home improvement, entertainment and furniture segments. Comparable St. Louis and PNI retail ROP increased 2.9 percent and 4.2 percent, respectively. Comparable total retail preprint revenue increased 12.0 percent in St. Louis and 7.1 percent at PNI. -- Comparable national advertising revenues, including preprints, increased 12.3 percent versus the comparable 2002 period due to strength in preprint revenue, which increased 35.9 percent for the period. Comparable national ROP increased 9.3 percent, principally due to strength in the travel and automotive categories. -- Comparable classified revenue increased 3.9 percent from last year due to strength in automotive and real estate revenue in St. Louis and increases in help wanted and real estate revenue at PNI. October 2003 comparable help wanted revenue decreased 6.7 percent in St. Louis and increased 6.7 percent at PNI. Comparable automotive revenue increased 8.6 percent in St. Louis and decreased 7.9 percent at PNI. Comparable October real estate revenue increased 10.5 percent in St. Louis and 12.3 percent at PNI. October 2003 revenue associated with the Company's 50 percent interest in the Tucson Newspaper Agency ("TNI") decreased 0.2 percent and total advertising revenue decreased 0.4 percent. TNI retail revenue, including preprints, decreased 5.8 percent with a 1.4 percent decrease in retail preprints. TNI national revenue, including preprints, decreased 14.7 percent, principally due to weakness in the pharmaceutical and entertainment categories. October classified revenue increased 11.5 percent, with help wanted showing increases of 27.7 percent, partially offset by declines in automotive and real estate revenue of 0.2 percent each. Earnings Guidance (see Notes) The Company reaffirms its guidance for full-year 2003 base earnings per diluted share, initially presented in December 2002, of at least $1.95. However, as previously stated, continued weakness from recruitment, automotive and major retail advertisers, and the fourth quarter ramp-up in costs associated with implementing the upcoming purchase of the St. Louis distribution businesses of certain single copy dealers, make achieving this level of base earnings more challenging than originally anticipated. Pulitzer Inc., through various subsidiaries and affiliated entities, is engaged in newspaper publishing and related new media activities. The Company's newspaper operations include two major metropolitan dailies, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson, Arizona, and 12 other dailies: The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.; The Daily Herald, Provo, Utah; the Santa Maria Times, Santa Maria, Calif.; The Napa Valley Register, Napa, Calif.; The World, Coos Bay, Ore.; The Sentinel, Hanford, Calif.; the Arizona Daily Sun, Flagstaff, Ariz.; the Daily Chronicle, DeKalb, Ill.; The Garden Island, Lihue, Hawaii; the Daily Journal, Park Hills, Mo.; The Lompoc Record, Lompoc, Calif.; and The Daily News, Rhinelander, Wisc. The Company's newspaper operations also include the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, a group of 37 weekly papers and various niche publications. The Company's new media and interactive initiatives include STLtoday.com in St. Louis, azstarnet.com in Tucson, and Web sites for all of its other dailies. Pulitzer Inc. is the successor to the company originally founded by Joseph Pulitzer in St. Louis in 1878. For further information, visit our Web site at http://www.pulitzerinc.com/. NOTES: Statements in this press release concerning the Company's business outlook or future economic performance, anticipated profitability, revenues, expenses or other financial items, together with other statements that are not historical facts, are "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined under the Federal Securities Laws. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those stated in such statements. Such risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, industry cyclicality, the seasonal nature of the business, changes in pricing or other actions by competitors or suppliers (including newsprint), outcome of labor negotiations, capital or similar requirements, and general economic conditions, any of which may impact advertising and circulation revenues and various types of expenses, as well as other risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in "forward-looking statements" are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Accordingly, investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such "forward-looking statements," and the Company disclaims any obligation to update the information contained herein or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to such "forward-looking statements" to reflect future events or developments. The Company's calculation of "Base Earnings" and "Base Earnings per Diluted Share," including guidance contained herein for full-year 2003 base earnings per diluted share, exclude gains and losses related to certain non-operating investments that are not a strategic component of the Company's capital structure or operating plans (principally, investments in new media companies and partnerships making similar investments), and employment termination inducements associated with positions that will not be staffed. Gains or losses on the sale of marketable securities reflect activity in a strategic component of the Company's capital structure and are, therefore, included in the determination of "Base Earnings," and "Base Earnings per Diluted Share." The Company cannot currently determine full-year 2003 investment gains and losses, if any, related to certain non-operating investments or future employment termination inducements, if any. The Company's calculation of "Base Earnings" and "Base Earnings per Diluted Share," including guidance contained herein for full-year 2003 base earnings per diluted share, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. "Base Earnings" and "Base Earnings per Diluted Share," as defined above, are not measures of performance under generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") and should not be construed as substitutes for consolidated net income and diluted earnings per share as a measure of performance. However, management uses "Base Earnings" and "Base Earnings per Diluted Share" for comparing the Company's past, current, and future performance and believes that they provide meaningful and comparable information to investors to aid in their analysis of the Company's performance relative to other periods and to its peers. PULITZER INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES PERIOD REVENUE AND STATISTICAL REPORT (Revenue in thousands--Unaudited) Five Five 44 44 Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Nov. 2, Nov. 3, Nov. 2, Nov. 3, 2003 2002 Change 2003 2002 Change (Note 4) (Note 4) Consolidated Operating Revenues (Note 1): Advertising: Retail $12,412 $11,913 4.2% $ 97,333 $ 97,770 (0.4%) National 3,181 2,911 9.3% 23,949 21,432 11.7% Classified 12,534 11,928 5.1% 105,931 110,007 (3.7%) Total 28,127 26,752 5.1% 227,213 229,209 (0.9%) Preprints 6,282 5,590 12.4% 50,305 44,471 13.1% Total Advertising 34,409 32,342 6.4% 277,518 273,680 1.4% Circulation 7,710 7,846 (1.7%) 68,033 68,305 (0.4%) Other 644 1,073 (40.0%) 5,808 6,857 (15.3%) Total $42,763 $41,261 3.6% $351,359 $348,842 0.7% Operating Revenues of Consolidated Subsidiaries: Combined St. Louis Operations (Note 2): Advertising (Note 3): $24,652 $23,278 5.9% $200,638 $198,214 1.2% Circulation 5,688 5,810 (2.1%) 50,434 50,575 (0.3%) Other 205 486 (57.8%) 1,405 1,927 (27.1%) Total $30,545 $29,574 3.3% $252,477 $250,716 0.7% Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc. Advertising (Note 3): $ 9,757 $ 9,064 7.6% $ 76,880 $ 75,466 1.9% Circulation 2,022 2,036 (0.7%) 17,599 17,730 (0.7%) Other 439 587 (25.2%) 4,403 4,930 (10.7%) Total $12,218 $11,687 4.5% $ 98,882 $ 98,126 0.8% Operating Revenues of Unconsolidated Newspaper Joint Venture: Pulitzer's 50% share of Tucson Newspaper Agency: Advertising (Note 3): $ 4,139 $ 4,155 (0.4%) $ 34,635 $ 34,249 1.1% Circulation 1,087 1,033 5.2% 9,663 9,036 6.9% Other 31 79 (60.8%) 379 495 (23.4%) Total $ 5,257 $ 5,267 (0.2%) $ 44,677 $ 43,780 2.0% Note 1 Year-to-year comparisons are affected by current-year weekly newspaper acquisitions that complement the Company's newspapers in several markets. On a comparable basis, excluding the impact of the 2003 acquisitions absent in 2002, advertising and total revenues would have increased and decreased as follows: Five-Week 44-Week Comparable Change Comparable Change Total Total Pulitzer PNI Pulitzer PNI Advertising Revenue 5.6% 4.8% 1.1% 0.9% Total Revenue 2.9% 2.0% 0.5% (0.1%) Note 2 Includes revenues of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, St. Louis e-media operations, and STL Distribution Services. Note 3 For the five-week and year-to-date periods ended November 2, 2003, classified employment advertising revenue in St. Louis, including STLtoday.com, declined 6.7 percent and 12.8 percent, respectively. At PNI, comparable classified employment advertising revenue, excluding the impact of 2003 acquisitions absent in 2002, increased 6.7 percent and decreased 3.4 percent for the five-week and year-to-date periods, respectively. At the Tucson Newspaper Agency, classified employment advertising revenue increased 27.7 percent and 3.7 percent for the five-week and year-to-date periods, respectively. Note 4 Certain reclassifications have been made to the 2003 and 2002 financial statements and statistical data to conform with the presentation made for the tenth period of 2003. PULITZER INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES PERIOD REVENUE AND STATISTICAL REPORT SELECTED STATISTICAL INFORMATION Five Five 44 44 Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Nov. 2, Nov. 3, Nov. 2, Nov. 3, 2003 2002 Change 2003 2002 Change (Note 4) (Note 4) Advertising Linage (in thousands of inches) ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: Advertising Inches Full run (all zones) Retail 87.6 80.1 9.4% 630.6 619.9 1.7% General 21.3 21.9 (2.6%) 163.7 164.9 (0.7%) Classified 96.4 100.5 (4.1%) 869.7 909.7 (4.4%) Total 205.3 202.4 1.4% 1,663.9 1,694.4 (1.8%) Part run (Retail/ Classified) 49.7 51.5 (3.5%) 406.1 470.7 (13.7%) Total Inches 255.0 253.9 0.4% 2,070.0 2,165.2 (4.4%) TUCSON NEWSPAPER AGENCY: Star/Citizen advertising inches Full run (all zones) Retail 142.9 157.2 (9.1%) 1,236.2 1,318.5 (6.2%) General 10.6 10.5 1.0% 76.1 85.5 (11.0%) Classified 155.3 150.1 3.5% 1,327.4 1,315.7 0.9% Total 308.8 317.8 (2.8%) 2,639.7 2,719.7 (2.9%) Part run (Retail/ Classified) 1.7 7.2 (76.4%) 55.9 80.9 (30.9%) Total Inches 310.5 325.0 (4.5%) 2,695.6 2,800.6 (3.7%) Year-to-Date Period Average Average 2003 2002 Change 2003 2002 Change Circulation (Note 5): ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: Daily 285,000 286,818 (0.6%) 285,000 286,818 (0.6%) Sunday 448,805 467,905 (4.1%) 448,805 467,905 (4.1%) COMBINED PULITZER NEWSPAPERS, INC.: Daily 190,914 191,404 (0.3%) 188,841 188,342 0.3% Sunday 190,341 190,628 (0.2%) 190,398 188,666 0.9% TUCSON NEWSPAPER AGENCY: Star Daily 103,347 103,300 0.0% 103,098 102,693 0.4% Citizen Daily 32,253 34,762 (7.2%) 33,565 36,265 (7.4%) Combined Daily 135,600 138,062 (1.8%) 136,663 138,958 (1.7%) Star Sunday 169,844 171,005 (0.7%) 169,942 170,641 (0.4%) Five Five 44 44 Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Nov. 2, Nov. 3, Nov. 2, Nov. 3, 2003 2002 Change 2003 2002 Change (Note 4) (Note 4) Online Page Views (in thousands) Combined St. Louis (Note 6): 28,187 16,977 66.0% 220,639 146,664 50.4% Combined PNI Web sites (Note 7): 8,031 9,295 (13.6%) 74,559 82,894 (10.1%) Combined Tucson Web sites: 6,738 8,344 (19.2%) 66,338 57,034 16.3% Note 5 Year-to-date circulation levels represent averages (unaudited) for the current ABC annual audit periods ending September 30 and December 31 for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Tucson Newspaper Agency, respectively. Year-to-date PNI amounts represent combined averages (unaudited) for the annual periods ending December 31. Note 6 Company estimate for year-to-date 2002. Note 7 Beginning in January 2003, the Company changed the manner in which PNI records page view data. 2003 data may not be comparable with 2002 reported results. DATASOURCE: Pulitzer Inc. CONTACT: James V. Maloney, Director of Shareholder Relations of Pulitzer Inc., +1-314-340-8402 Web site: http://www.pulitzerinc.com/ http://azstarnet.com/ http://stltoday.com/

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