Washington Post reports 69 percent jump 3Q profit as education, cable TV bolster revenue

Washington Post reports jump in 3Q profit

NEW YORK — The Washington Post Co. reported a 69 percent jump in third-quarter profit Friday as its newspapers trimmed their losses and its cable TV and education divisions held steady.

The company, which owns Newsweek magazine, Kaplan education services and television properties along with The Washington Post newspaper, earned $17.1 million, or $1.81 per share. That compares with a year-earlier net income of $10.1 million, or $1.08 per share.

Revenue climbed 2 percent to $1.15 billion.

The newspaper division, which includes dozens of dailies and weeklies, whittled its operating losses through buyouts and other cost-cutting moves to $23.6 million, down from $82.7 million a year ago.

That happened even though advertising revenue at the flagship newspaper took a steeper dive than the quarter before, falling 28 percent. The newspaper had seen a 20 percent drop in the second quarter and a 33 percent drop in the first.

The Post’s decline was comparable to what other big publishes have seen. The New York Times Co.’s advertising revenue plunged 27 percent in the most recent quarter. Ad revenue in Gannett Co.’s publishing division, which includes USA Today and more than 80 other newspapers, dropped 28 percent.