Gannett Co. Inc.'s cable operations saw revenue
increase more than 11 percent and cash flow rise 4.7 percent during the third quarter
ended Sept. 30.
Gannett, which also owns newspapers and television stations
across the U.S., attributed the increase at its cable operations to overall subscriber
growth and the sale of one of its cable properties -- Multimedia Cablevision Inc. -- to
Cox Communications Inc.
Gannett's cable operations mainly consist of Cable One
Inc., a Phoenix-based MSO with 512,000 subscribers in 18 states.
Overall, Gannett's operating revenue increased 11
percent in the third quarter, while its net income was up by 18 percent to $207.5 million,
or 74 cents per share. For the nine-month period, overall revenue was up 13 percent to
$630.6 million, and earnings rose 15 percent to $2.24 per share.
For the nine-month period, cable revenues were up 11
percent to $190.5 million and cash flow increased 6 percent to $86.9 million.
Cable revenues increased 11 percent in the third quarter to
$64.7 million and operating cash flow was $28.9 million for the quarter. Basic-cable
subscribers totaled 516,951 at the end of the quarter, equal to 62 percent of homes
passed. Pay subscribers numbered 355,184 at the end of the quarter.
The company announced in July that it had agreed to sell
the assets of Multimedia Cablevision Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Gannett's
Multimedia Inc., to Cox Communications Inc. for about $2.7 billion in cash. Closing is
expected in the first quarter of 2000.
