Lee reports $600,000 loss for second quarter

Lee Enterprises – owner of the Quad City Times and Dispatch Argus newspapers – reported a net loss of $600,000 (6 cents per share) for the second quarter ended March 28.

The loss reflects a 16 percent decline in advertising and marketing services revenue for the period compared (on a pro forma basis) with the same three-month period a year ago.

Lee acquired BH Media early last year, adding more than 30 newspapers and their online new sites to its operation. The pro forma numbers assume the two organizations were a combined company for both the second quarter of this year and the second quarter a year ago.

On a pro forma basis, operating expenses and cash costs were down 9 percent compared with the second quarter a year ago, while subscription revenue increased almost 2 percent.

Operating revenue on a pro forma basis was down 8.1 percent for the quarter compared with a year ago.

As of the end of March, Lee reported total debt of $499 million, a reduction of $77 million since completion of its BH Media acquisition and debt refinancing in March 2020.

CLICK HERE to download Lee's second quarter results.

Lee is headquartered in Davenport and operates newspapers and online news sites in 77 cities, including the St. Louis Post-Gazette, the Omaha World-Herald and the Buffalo News. Last month the company switched from the New York Stock Exchange to the Nasdaq Exchange under the "LEE" trading name.