Gannett Craters Following Earnings

(Article updated with information on first-half earnings.)

MCLEAN, Va. (TheStreet) -- Gannett(GCI) shares plunged 10.6% today and was one of the market's biggest price losers despite announcing a triple-digit gain in earnings for the second quarter.

Lower expenses and the completion of the sale of some of its businesses sent earnings for the publisher of USA Today skyrocketing. For the quarter ended June 27, earnings rose more than 150% to $195.5 million, or 81 cents a diluted share, compared with earnings of $70.5 million, or 30 cents a share, in the same period a year ago.

Revenue declined 1.6% to $1.37 billion from $1.39 billion during the quarter.

Advertising revenue for the company's publishing unit, the company's largest business segment, declined 5.7% to $692.2 million from $734.2 million. U.S. ad revenues were down 4.6 percent while revenue for U.K. subsidiary Newsquest were down 6.4%

USA Today advertising revenue was lower as softness in the travel category continued. However, improvements were seen in the automotive, retail and packaged goods areas. The number of paid advertising pages came in at 580 compared with 602.

Publishing circulation revenue, its second-largest segment, also dropped 5.9% to $270.1 million from $287.1 million.

While its two largest segments struggled, the company made significant gains in its digital and broadcasting businesses. Digital revenue increased 8.3% to $154.1 million from $142.4 million while broadcasting revenue spiked 20.3% to $184 million from $153 million.

"Stronger core advertising demand and increased political spending drove revenue growth in broadcasting while positive revenue results at CareerBuilder and PointRoll contributed to revenue growth in the digital segment," said Craig Dubow, chairman and chief executive officer.