News Corp earnings: 20 cents per share, vs expected EPS of 21 cents

News Corp. reported mixed results Thursday, citing foreign currency fluctuations and lower print advertising revenue.

The global media company, which is controlled by Rupert Murdoch, posted fiscal second-quarter earnings of 20 cents per share on $2.16 billion in revenue.

Analysts had expected News Corp. to report earnings of about 21 cents a share on $2.13 billion in revenue, according to consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters.

“News Corp. is evolving rapidly into a more digital and increasingly global company with a diverse revenue mix that we believe will drive long-term growth in profits and shareholder returns,” CEO Robert Thomson said in a statement.

Despite beating analyst estimates, News Corp.’s revenue fell for the fourth quarter in a row, hurt by a slump in its core news and information services business, which includes Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal.

“In our news and information services segment, print advertising remained challenged, but we are seeing growth in digital advertising and circulation revenues. We are particularly focused on cost reductions and sharing services around News Corp. to streamline operations at the newspapers in Australia and the U.K.,” said Thomson.

Revenue at News Corp.’s news and information services unit declined 8.1 percent to $1.40 billion from a year earlier. The division, which accounted for about 65 percent of total revenue, also owns The New York Post and The Sun.

News Corp.’s segment advertising revenue fell 12 percent in the quarter. The company’s total revenue also took a $141 million hit due to foreign currency fluctuations.

Net income available to shareholders fell 56 percent to $62 million, or 11 cents per share.

Newspaper and magazine publishers have been under unabated pressure to offset a decline in print advertising dollars by shoring up their digital business to attract advertisers and by boosting subscriptions.

News Corp.’s quarterly results come as fellow media companies Yahooand 21st Century Fox announced job cuts this week. After its earnings miss Tuesday, Yahoo announced that it is planning on cutting about 15 percent of its workforce as part of a restructuring plan. On Monday,21st Century Fox said that it intends to trim $250 million in personnel costs.

News Corp. announced a major reorganization at its Dow Jones news publishing unit in June. Dow Jones said it would close bureaus in Prague and Helsinki and eliminate 100 jobs, according to a Journalreport.

Shares of News Corp. were unchanged in extended-hours trading Thursday.

— Reuters contributed to this report.