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- News Corp (NWS) says this financial year is set to be “the most profitable since our reincarnation in 2013,” thanks in part to its real estate operations
- Revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 came to almost $2.34 billion — three per cent higher than the same period last year
- The most notable improvement came from its digital real estate services, which reported a 34 per cent increase in revenue
- However, revenues from the company’s news media segment fell $183 million — or 25 per cent — from the previous year
- Fourth-quarter expenses are anticipated to increase by around $20 million, due partly to reinstated employee bonuses that had been dropped during the pandemic
- News Corp is up 4.4 per cent to $32.05 per share
News Corp (NWS) says this financial year is set to be “the most profitable since our reincarnation in 2013,” thanks in part to its real estate operations.
The media giant said revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 came to almost $2.34 billion — three per cent higher than the same period last year. In addition to a $176 million boost from foreign currency fluctuations, News Corp also cited continued growth in its book publishing and Dow Jones segments.
However, the most notable improvement came from its digital real estate services, which reported revenues of $351 million — up 34 per cent from $261 million last year.
Move, which operates the real estate listing website Realtor.com, saw a $44 million — or 37 per cent — jump in revenue to $162 million. News Corp said the increase was driven by strong growth in the platform’s lead generation product and its referral model, which both benefitted from a 40 per cent increase in average monthly lead volume.
News Corp’s chief executive Robert Thomson said the performance highlights the “transformed character” of the company.
“The results vindicate the strategy of simplifying the asset mix, vigorously pursuing digitisation, slimming the cost base, and investing in three growth areas — Digital Real Estate Services, Dow Jones and Book Publishing — which collectively generated 55 percent Segment EBITDA growth in the third quarter,” he said.
But it wasn’t all positive. Revenues from the company’s news media segment fell $183 million — or 25 per cent — from the previous year, driven partly by a $199 million impact from the sale of News America Marketing in May 2020.
News Corp said the decline also reflects inherent weakness in the print advertising market, and a $28 million impact from the closure or transition to digital of some regional and community newspapers in Australia.
The sale of News America Marketing also dealt a blow to advertising revenues, which fell by $215 million, or 50 per cent.
Looking ahead, News Corp said it expects its fourth-quarter expenses to increase by around $20 million, due to reinstated employee bonuses that had been dropped during the height of the pandemic, as well as continued investment in its global shared services initiative, which is designed to centralise many of the company’s functions.
News Corp is up 4.4 per cent to $32.05 per share at 12:40 pm AEST.
