This one, Gracia Martore, came off as polished, confident -- even humorous. She not only made jokes, she appeared to ad lib new ones when others fell flat.
Introducing Gannett executives at a Wall Street media analysts conference on Thursday, she noted that Bob Dickey is president of the U.S. community newspaper division -- “when he’s not pitching for the New York Mets.”
You could practically hear the crickets chirping.
"Come on,” she urged her audience. “There's got to be some baseball people. R. Dickey? Never mind."
OK, maybe it was entirely scripted. The point is, Dubow -- who stepped down in October -- wasn’t exactly famous for light-hearted presentations to the men and women of Wall Street who can drive GCI’s stock price.
But now, as the second quarter winds down, the larger question remains: Will a newly rebranded CEO win over a Wall Street accustomed to a history of promises that often weren't kept?
Dealing the Chicken
Martore, appearing before the Media and Entertainment Analysts of New York, talked up the company’s initiatives, from DealChicken to the new paywalls to the growing USA Today Sports Media Group.
Wall Street, in turn, seemed in a buying mood. Shares closed up 3.2% on a day when the broader market tanked. That jump followed a month that’s been good overall: Since closing at their most recent low, $12.13 on June 1, GCI shares have clawed their way back -- closing at $13.50 on Friday. That’s an 11% gain -- far better than the S&P 500 index, which rose a smaller 4.5%.
Martore, despite being Dubow’s closest hand, is still enjoying her own honeymoon on Wall Street. The newspaper paywalls are being rolled out. USA Today Publisher Larry Kramer is just a month into his hoped-for turnaround of GCI’s most visible brand. The Sports Media Group continues to forecast $300 million in new revenue by 2015.
Still, newspaper publishers don’t have the best credibility on Wall Street. And GCI, the nation’s biggest, is among many that have made big promises that later fizzled out.
Don't forget Moms
In his annual letter to shareholders in early 2010, Dubow touted the Moms Like Me social network for female consumers as a great example of a home-grown digital enterprise. He quoted an Advertising Age article that said any family-focused marketer “should have a commanding presence here.”
Less than two years later, this past October, Corporate pulled the plug on Moms, saying it was no longer worth the effort.
And remember the dividend increase and stock buyback in July?
“We believe Gannett’s stock is a terrific value and a very attractive investment,” Dubow said in a statement at the time. “Together with this dividend increase, these actions by our board reflect our sound financial status and our ongoing desire to return value to shareholders.”
Of course, that was in July 2006 -- when GCI’s stock was at $41.60.
The more recent July dividend boost, last summer, included a similar pledge from Dubow: “We are committed to creating value for our shareholders and believe our stock is an outstanding investment at current price levels.”
GCI then closed at $12.45 a share, and that’s after adjusting for the July 18 dividend increase, plus a second one this past February. So, now, nearly a year later, shares are at $13.50 -- once more, a better performance than the S&P 500, but hardly gangbusters, considering the dividend has soared to 20 cents a quarter from 4 cents.
No kidding
Wall Street often doesn’t sweat the small stuff. Moms Like Me? Metromix? Anyone even remember Cozi? Big investors ultimately focus on the big numbers, like revenue. Last week, one of the analysts asked whether print advertising sales would ever start growing again.
On this one, Martore hemmed and hawed, before finally saying that total newspaper and other publishing revenue might rise 2% by 2015 -- or perhaps not at all.
And that’s nothing to joke about.
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| Martore |
You could practically hear the crickets chirping.
"Come on,” she urged her audience. “There's got to be some baseball people. R. Dickey? Never mind."
OK, maybe it was entirely scripted. The point is, Dubow -- who stepped down in October -- wasn’t exactly famous for light-hearted presentations to the men and women of Wall Street who can drive GCI’s stock price.
But now, as the second quarter winds down, the larger question remains: Will a newly rebranded CEO win over a Wall Street accustomed to a history of promises that often weren't kept?
Dealing the Chicken
Martore, appearing before the Media and Entertainment Analysts of New York, talked up the company’s initiatives, from DealChicken to the new paywalls to the growing USA Today Sports Media Group.
Wall Street, in turn, seemed in a buying mood. Shares closed up 3.2% on a day when the broader market tanked. That jump followed a month that’s been good overall: Since closing at their most recent low, $12.13 on June 1, GCI shares have clawed their way back -- closing at $13.50 on Friday. That’s an 11% gain -- far better than the S&P 500 index, which rose a smaller 4.5%.
Martore, despite being Dubow’s closest hand, is still enjoying her own honeymoon on Wall Street. The newspaper paywalls are being rolled out. USA Today Publisher Larry Kramer is just a month into his hoped-for turnaround of GCI’s most visible brand. The Sports Media Group continues to forecast $300 million in new revenue by 2015.
Still, newspaper publishers don’t have the best credibility on Wall Street. And GCI, the nation’s biggest, is among many that have made big promises that later fizzled out.
In his annual letter to shareholders in early 2010, Dubow touted the Moms Like Me social network for female consumers as a great example of a home-grown digital enterprise. He quoted an Advertising Age article that said any family-focused marketer “should have a commanding presence here.”
Less than two years later, this past October, Corporate pulled the plug on Moms, saying it was no longer worth the effort.
And remember the dividend increase and stock buyback in July?
“We believe Gannett’s stock is a terrific value and a very attractive investment,” Dubow said in a statement at the time. “Together with this dividend increase, these actions by our board reflect our sound financial status and our ongoing desire to return value to shareholders.”
Of course, that was in July 2006 -- when GCI’s stock was at $41.60.
The more recent July dividend boost, last summer, included a similar pledge from Dubow: “We are committed to creating value for our shareholders and believe our stock is an outstanding investment at current price levels.”
GCI then closed at $12.45 a share, and that’s after adjusting for the July 18 dividend increase, plus a second one this past February. So, now, nearly a year later, shares are at $13.50 -- once more, a better performance than the S&P 500, but hardly gangbusters, considering the dividend has soared to 20 cents a quarter from 4 cents.
No kidding
Wall Street often doesn’t sweat the small stuff. Moms Like Me? Metromix? Anyone even remember Cozi? Big investors ultimately focus on the big numbers, like revenue. Last week, one of the analysts asked whether print advertising sales would ever start growing again.
On this one, Martore hemmed and hawed, before finally saying that total newspaper and other publishing revenue might rise 2% by 2015 -- or perhaps not at all.
And that’s nothing to joke about.
