Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Earnings | What's on Martore's shopping list?

"Share repurchases, and additional investments and potential acquisition opportunities are important uses of cash that we will continue to focus on as we get some better sense of where the economy is headed."

-- President Gracia Martore, answering a stock analyst's question on Friday about how Gannett might spend big money in the near future. This came during the second-quarter earnings teleconference's Q&A session, according to Seeking Alpha's transcript.

Earlier: Gannett spent $1.8 billion buying back shares in 2005-2008

20 comments:

  1. I have been thinking that what GCI needs is a deep-pockets company like Kaplan serves for the Washington Post, and that is a cash cow. The Post would be in considerable trouble today, were it not for the revenues from the Kaplan educational testing and schools program. I'm wondering if that of reaching for the stars is what Gracia has in mind -- an all or nothing gamble of buying another company unassociated with newspapers or TV?

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  2. Why are we talking about stock repurchases? Why aren't we paying down debt????????

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  3. Yea really, stock repurchases? What color is the sky she is living in? Martore has lost total touch of reality!

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  4. 9:48 if you bothered to pay attention you'd know that the company is paying down the debt. Way to stay informed. But don't let that stand in your way. Keep whinning.

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  5. I might tell my girls that if we win the lottery we'll buy a pony. When you're talking to stock analysts, you tell them you'd buy your stock back.

    It's not lying if it COULD happen, right?

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  6. The guy in charge of M&A here, Dan Ehrman, is a dinosaur. The kid that worked for him Neil Just quit apparently. There is no acquisition strategy. We keep on looking at bad print businesses and broadcast companies.

    I wouldn't doubt that Mr. Ehrman resigns soon.

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  7. It's been obvious over the past year or so that the company has been paying down it debt. And that's a good idea! It's just a shame that that the corporate brains got the company into such a hole in the first place.

    A key issue, as another poster has pointed out, is that the industry as a whole weighed itself down with a lot of useless, non-revenue generating debt.

    I suggest that it was the need to get out from under that led Gannett and other companies to begin the spiral of wage freezes, furloughs and layoffs.

    Listen to the top execs of many of these companies, Gannett included, and you'd think everything was a well-crafted plan to rocket their firm into tomorrow's technological gold mine.

    Bullshit.

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  8. What about offering your employees a better healthcare plan? Nah, thats "nice" and Gannett doesn't work that way.

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  9. 6:18 am is correct. It's rare for companies to rule out an option 100%. That keeps analysts from coming back and rapping management for doing something it said it would never do.

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  10. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  11. Here's an idea.
    Instead of Gannett spending money on rebuying stocks or, God forbid, buying more properties to wring dry, how about reviewing the salaries they give their college-educated, (in many case) fairly experienced reporters, photographers, designers, etc.? I have three years' experience and, after my paper shut down, took a job at a mid-size Gannett daily. I took a pay cut from WHEN I WAS AN INTERN. So many of my colleagues make under $30,000 -- though some have advanced degrees and as much if not more experience than I do -- that it's really disgusting. Nice to know how much Gannett values the people who do the work that allows them to make any profit at all. I know times are tough, and the company's in trouble, but treating valuable employees like dirt is not the way to go. Ever.

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  12. Gannett should buy an Internet layaway business whereby consumers would purchase stuff on the net and make payments. Once the item is paid off, it ships. If the customer doesn't payoff the item, then Gannett pockets the cash. This type of business doesn't deliver information, but it would deliver products and cash.

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  13. 7:06, You say that Gannett doesn't value you and other employees because they only pay your around 30 grand. I say you don't value yourself. You and the others agree to work for 30 grand so you discount your own worth.

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  14. 7:08 WTF? It almost sounds dumb enough to come from Gannett management.

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  15. Gannett should use their cash and buyout the entire management team (sort of a reverse management buy-out) where the company just throws these shitheads out on their asses and we can hire a whole new team. Heck, maybe my Chairman Award of 200 shares will actually be worth something after they vest 25% a year!!!

    Cheap greedy bastards!!!

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  16. 4:09: Unfortunately, the layaway business sounds more likely. Just sayin'.

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  17. If you read the entire transcript, here's what she said at the very end: "Sure, as I mentioned a little bit earlier, in the short term given the continued uncertainty around the economy, we are going to be using a lot of that cash to pay down debt, although always looking out for great investment and acquisition opportunities that can move the growth trajectory of the company forward. But probably with the uncertainty as I said, probably going to pay down cash before we look at doing share repurchases or other activities like that."

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  18. That's correct, 8:20 am. The quote I posted was Martore's response to a question specifically about share repurchasing plans.

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  19. Yep. Those Gannett employees are mighty good at complaining that they're overworked and underpaid.

    Well, in case they don't know, the company doesn't care. GCI management couldn't care less. So the thing to do is get the heck out when the economy improves.

    And oh, by the way, you might ask your manager for a one-time bonus if you quit so they can throw the net on another unsuspecting serf willing to work for peanuts.

    Play up the cost savings angle. Heck, you may even get offered a management job!

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  20. I can't believe the company has not sold more of its unproductive "assets". Dump them for anything. Soon.

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Jim says: "Proceed with caution; this is a free-for-all comment zone. I try to correct or clarify incorrect information. But I can't catch everything. Please keep your posts focused on Gannett and media-related subjects. Note that I occasionally review comments in advance, to reject inappropriate ones. And I ignore hostile posters, and recommend you do, too."

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