Updates on TORSTAR CORP., LOBLAW COMPANIES

Article Excerpt

TORSTAR CORP. $12.35 (Toronto symbol TS.B; Shares outstanding: 78.9 million; Market cap: $974.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 2.7%; target=”_blank”>www.torstar.com) continues to expand its Internet businesses. That’s helping it offset slowing advertising and circulation revenue at its newspapers. However, these investments cut its earnings by 7.0% in the three months ended March 31, 2011, to $15.4 million, or $0.19 a share. That missed the consensus estimate of $0.28. Torstar earned $16.6 million, or $0.21 a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 4.9%, to $351.4 million from $335.0 million. That beat the consensus revenue estimate of $337 million. Revenue at Torstar’s media division (which supplies 67% of its overall revenue) rose 6.2% in the quarter. On April 1, 2011, the company received $291.6 million from the sale of its 20% stake in CTVglobemedia. The company put this cash toward its total debt of $411.1 million. Torstar also raised its quarterly dividend by 35.1%, to $0.125 a share from $0.0925. The…