Dallas Morning News parent company reports $2.8 million quarterly loss

The parent company of The Dallas Morning News reports a net loss of $ 2.8 million for the first three months of this year, compared to a loss of $ 1.6 million for the same period last year.

AH Belo Corporation announced quarterly results on Monday after trading closes.

To cut expenses, the company has offered voluntary severance pay to employees in non-editorial departments such as finance and accounting, IT, and production. As of March 31, the company had 713 employees, 9.5% fewer than a year earlier.

“Obviously, it’s important to continue to focus on generating revenue across all platforms while designing the company’s cost structure to reflect the smaller company that AH Belo has become,” said Chairman, President and CEO Robert W Decherd in a statement.

The company also said it has entered into a non-binding agreement with Ray Washburnes ‘charter DMN Holdings to extend its purchase of The News’ former headquarters through June 30, 2022. Charter fell due in June for a payment of $ 22.4 million.

Speaking on a conference call Tuesday to discuss the results, Decherd said the one-year extension would generate $ 1 million in revenue in quarterly interest payments from Washburne, a real estate developer, restaurant operator and retail center owner. He plans to convert the Young Street landmark into an entertainment district for events at the nearby Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.

“That’s $ 1 million in revenue that we wouldn’t be guaranteed otherwise,” said Decherd, emphasizing that a final agreement has yet to be made with Washburne. “The timing is fine for us and the income is important.”

The pandemic is a challenge for both commercial real estate and news companies, Decherd said.

However, he said he saw “encouraging signs” in AH Belo’s results, such as stability in retention of print customers, an increase in digital subscription prices and a return of advertisers who have sat out the pandemic.

Chief Financial Officer Katy Murray said digital subscriptions – a key to the company’s transition from its legacy newspaper model – rose to over 50,000 in the quarter. The quarter closed with 50,852 digital subscribers, an increase of 29.2% over the same period last year.

“The board’s commitment to investing in this growth is the best way to become a sustainably profitable digital newspaper company,” said Decherd in a statement.

Total revenue for the quarter fell to $ 36.8 million, 8.7% less than the same period last year, as the pandemic curtailed The News’ print and digital ad revenue and kiosk sales. Spending totaled $ 40.5 million for the three month period, a 10.2% decrease from last year.

The company reported $ 38.1 million in cash at the end of March, up from $ 42 million at the end of 2020. Cash on hand rose to just over $ 39 million by April.

Correction: An earlier version of this story contained a reference to a federal tax refund that AH Belo received. This refund was made in 2020.

AH Belo Corporation will ask shareholders in May to approve the name change to DallasNews Corporation.

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