Dow Jones Profit Falls, Tops Lowered Forecast

Dow Jones & Co., publisher of the Wall Street Journal, said third-quarter profit fell 64% to $17.4 million, or 20 cents a share, and warned fourth-quarter earnings would fall far short of analysts’ expectations amid the worst newspaper advertising slump in years.

The results were 2 cents better than Wall Street’s lowered consensus estimate, according to Thomson Financial/First Call.

The company said revenue fell 21% to $397.6 million, with advertising revenue down 31%.

Chief Financial Officer Richard Zannino said disruptions to the company and its advertisers from the attacks accounted for 9 cents of the earnings decline.

For the fourth quarter, the company expects earnings of 25 cents to 35 cents a share, compared with analysts’ average forecast of 64 cents. Ad volumes at the Journal probably will be down 35% to 45%, the company said.

Dow Jones shares rose $1.91 to $46.12 on the NYSE.