Sacramento Blogs

The McClatchy Co.  — publisher of the Sacramento Bee — reported an 8.6 percent drop in overall revenue in July, as classified and national advertising plummeted for the newspaper publisher.

The Sacramento company, publisher of 31 daily newspapers, said its advertising dropped 9.4 percent to $169.4 million, from $186.9 million a year ago. The local company’s stock shares followed, dropping 3.7 percent in trading Monday and closing just two pennies from its 52 week low.

A dramatic decline in automotive and real estate advertising has pounded the classified revenue category, perhaps because of the Bee’s negative outlook on the local Sacramnto economy and housing market.

Many local businesses have reduced their advertising expeditures in the Sacramento Bee.  Lyon Real Estate recently announced it was dramatically reducing its advertising in the Sacramento Bee in favor of more internet advertising.

Advertising revenue at The McClatchy Co. (owners of the SacramentoBee) dropped almost ten percent in the second quarter of 2007 compared to the previous year, led by a 19 percent decline in real estate advertising.

Ad revenue dropped 15 percent in California and 21 percent in Florida.

The company also said it would pay down debt by as much as $700 million over the next 18 months through cash flow and sale of assets. McClatchy’s stock has been heavily pounded by investors, caught between an industry-wide revenue slump and a high debt load from last year’s acquisition of Knight-Ridder Inc.

Total revenue for McClatchy declined 8.3 percent to $580,000,000 in the second quarter of 2007 from $632,000,000 in the previous years’ quarter.