Wall Street Journal shines in News Corp results

Rupert Murdoch’s former newspaper group, News Corporation, reported mixed results this week amid hints from chief executive Robert Thomson that Dow Jones, real estate and book publishing are now its priorities.

The Dow Jones segment, home to The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s, achieved record revenues of $600 million, marking a 3% increase compared to the same period last year. This growth was fuelled by a 5% rise in circulation and subscription revenues, with digital subscriptions now accounting for 81% of total revenues.

The Wall Street Journal itself saw a robust 7% increase in digital-only subscriptions, reaching nearly 3.8 million, while total subscriptions grew 4% to over 4.2 million. The professional information business also performed well, with Risk & Compliance revenues up 11% and Dow Jones Energy revenues increasing by 10%.

Thomson highlighted the segment’s success, saying: “Dow Jones continues to be a pillar of growth, with digital transformation driving both subscriber numbers and revenue. The Wall Street Journal remains a trusted source of news and analysis, and its digital offerings are resonating with audiences globally.”

In contrast, The Sun, its London tabloid, experienced a significant decline in web traffic. The publication’s digital offering reached 70 million global monthly unique users in December 2024, nearly halving from 143 million in the prior year. This decline was attributed to algorithm changes on certain platforms, which impacted traffic across several of News Corp’s mastheads.

This week The Sun announced that it was reintroducing a paywall and would charge readers of certain columnists and features.

The News Media segment as a whole saw a 2% decline in revenues, with advertising revenues down 2% due to lower print and digital ad sales. While cost-saving measures helped improve earnings by 30%, the decline in traffic and ad revenue underscores the challenges faced by traditional news outlets in an increasingly competitive digital landscape.

Other News Corp properties also faced mixed results. The New York Post saw its digital network reach 90 million unique users in December, down from 124 million in the prior year. Meanwhile, The Times and The Sunday Times in the UK reported a 7% increase in digital subscribers, reaching 616,000.

News Corp Australia’s digital subscribers grew modestly, with 1.126 million subscribers at the end of December 2024, up from 1.051 million the previous year. However, the segment’s overall revenues declined by 1%, reflecting the ongoing challenges in the print advertising market.

The company’s Digital Real Estate Services segment, led by REA Group, posted a 17% increase in revenues, driven by strong performance in the Australian residential market. Book Publishing also saw an 8% revenue increase.

The company also announced the sale of Foxtel to DAZN for an enterprise value of A$3.4 billion, a move aimed at simplifying its operations and focusing on core growth areas.