Belo Reports 7% Drop In 3Q Revenue

Belo Corp. today reported that its total revenue decreased 7% in the third quarter of 2011 versus the third quarter of 2010. Total spot revenue, excluding political, was down 2% with local spot revenue flat and national spot revenue down 5%.

Political revenue in the third quarter was $2.1 million compared to $11.2 million in the third quarter of 2010. Total spot revenue, including political, was down 9%. 

Other revenue, which includes barter and trade advertising, network compensation, Internet advertising and retransmission revenue, was flat in the third quarter of 2011 compared to the third quarter of 2010 as a double-digit percentage increase in combined retransmission and Internet revenue was offset by declines in network compensation and miscellaneous revenue.

Station salaries, wages and employee benefits decreased $800,000, or 1.5%, during the third quarter of 2011 versus a year earlier due primarily to lower accrued bonus expense. Station programming and other operating costs were essentially flat in the third quarter of 2011 compared to the third quarter of 2010.

Dunia A. Shive, Belo’s president-CEO, said: “Belo reported solid earnings for the third quarter of 2011, while cycling against more than $11 million of political revenue in the third quarter of 2010. Excluding political, Belo’s third quarter 2011 core spot revenue was down 2% from the prior year, with July being the softest month of the quarter and both August and September showing sequential improvement in year-to-year revenue comparisons.

“The automotive category in the third quarter of 2011 was flat when compared with the third quarter of 2010, with a 7% increase in the month of September and continued momentum into the fourth quarter. The company reduced its combined station and corporate operating costs by 3.7% from the third quarter of 2010.”

Looking to the fourth quarter, Shive said: “With the automotive category continuing to show improvement, we are currently estimating spot revenue without political to be up 3% to 4% in the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to the fourth quarter of 2010. Our stations generated $35.7 million of political revenue in the fourth quarter of 2010, which we will cycle against in the fourth quarter of 2011. As a result, we are currently estimating fourth quarter total revenue to be down in the low teens versus the prior year’s fourth quarter.”

Read the company’s report here.