PTZ Pulitzer

Pulitzer Inc. Reports Third-Period Revenue for Four Weeks Ended March 27, 2005 ST. LOUIS, April 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pulitzer Inc. (NYSE:PTZ) today announced that revenue increased 2.5 percent for the four-week accounting period ended March 27, 2005, and 3.3 percent for the thirteen-week year-to-date period when compared to the respective 2004 periods. March 2005 advertising revenue in St. Louis and at the 12 Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc. ("PNI") markets increased 3.0 percent, with decreases of 0.3 percent at the St. Louis operations and increases of 11.4 percent at PNI. On a comparable basis, excluding the results of PNI acquisitions absent in the comparable period of 2005 and 2004, total revenue increased 2.0 percent for the four-week period ended March 27, 2005, and increased 2.8 percent for the thirteen-week year-to-date period. Comparable advertising revenue increased 2.4 percent for the four-week period ended March 27, 2005, and increased 4.4 percent for the thirteen-week year-to-date period. Third-period 2005 comparable advertising revenue decreased 0.3 percent at the St. Louis operations and increased 9.4 percent at PNI. Comparable advertising revenue increased 2.6 percent at the St. Louis operations and 9.0 percent at PNI for the thirteen-week year-to-date period. The principal components of the third-period comparable advertising revenue results for St. Louis and PNI were: -- Comparable retail advertising revenue, including preprints, increased 4.6 percent. Comparable retail ROP revenue increased 2.1 percent, principally due to strength in the furniture, financial, and electronic categories, partially offset by weakness in the department store and entertainment categories and advertising revenue shifts related to the earlier observation of the Easter holiday in 2005 compared to 2004. St. Louis local territory revenues decreased 2.7 percent. Comparable retail ROP revenue decreased 2.4 percent in St. Louis and increased 10.5 percent at PNI. Comparable retail preprint revenue increased 13.2 percent in St. Louis reflecting, in part, a strong performance by Local Values, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's direct mail initiative, which began in March of 2004. PNI retail preprint revenue increased 1.9 percent. -- Comparable third-period national advertising revenue, including preprints, decreased 4.1 percent versus the respective 2004 period. This decrease was principally due to weakness in the financial and telecommunication categories, partially offset by strength in the travel category. Comparable national preprint revenue increased 28.6 percent for the period, and comparable national ROP revenue decreased 11.5 percent. Comparable national advertising revenue, including preprints, decreased 5.8 percent in St. Louis and increased 23.0 percent at PNI. -- Comparable third-period classified revenue increased 1.3 percent versus the respective 2004 period. The shift in the Easter holiday had a strong influence on this year-to-year comparison. Comparable Classified Advertising Revenue Percentage Change 2005 Versus 2004 Total Pulitzer, including Tucson Tucson Period 3 Total Newspaper Newspaper St. Louis PNI Pulitzer Agency Agency Help Wanted 1.4% 24.9% 7.3% 21.4% 9.2% Automotive (0.9%) (8.5%) (2.6%) (0.2%) (2.3%) Real Estate (14.5%) 13.4% (6.2%) (16.3%) (7.0%) Total Classified Revenue (2.5%) 11.0% 1.3% 6.3% 1.8% Comparable Classified Advertising Revenue Percentage Change 2005 Versus 2004 Total Pulitzer, including Tucson Tucson Year-To-Date Total Newspaper Newspaper St. Louis PNI Pulitzer Agency Agency Help Wanted 4.9% 34.1% 11.8% 22.2% 13.2% Automotive (5.3%) (7.3%) (5.7%) 4.1% (4.7%) Real Estate (7.6%) 14.8% (0.7%) (8.3%) (1.3%) Total Classified Revenue (1.7%) 14.2% 2.6% 9.4% 3.3% Third-period circulation revenue decreased 1.2 percent versus the respective 2004 period, principally due to decreased single copy sales in St. Louis. March 2005 revenue associated with the Company's 50 percent interest in the Tucson Newspaper Agency ("TNI") increased 4.9 percent and total advertising revenue increased 6.0 percent. TNI retail revenue, including preprints, increased 4.1 percent, with a 0.7 percent decrease in retail ROP and a 17.5 percent increase in retail preprint revenue. Local territory revenues increased 11.6 percent for the period. TNI national revenue, including preprints, increased 34.2 percent, with a 52.2 percent increase in national ROP and 4.8 percent increase in national preprints. March classified revenue increased 6.3 percent at TNI. OTHER On January 30, 2005, Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE) and Pulitzer Inc. (NYSE:PTZ) announced that they entered into a definitive agreement for Lee to acquire all of Pulitzer's capital stock for a cash purchase price of $64 per share, with enterprise value totaling $1.46 billion based upon a value of $64 per share. The boards of directors of both companies unanimously approved the transaction. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and approval by Pulitzer shareholders. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the second calendar quarter of 2005. Pulitzer Inc., through various subsidiaries and affiliated entities, is engaged in newspaper publishing and related new media activities. The Company's newspaper operations include two major metropolitan dailies, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson, Ariz., and, through its Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc. ("PNI") subsidiary, 12 other dailies and more than 75 weekly newspapers, shoppers and niche publications. The PNI dailies are The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.; The Daily Herald, Provo, Utah; the Santa Maria Times, Santa Maria, Calif.; The Napa Valley Register, Napa, Calif.; The World, Coos Bay, Ore.; The Sentinel, Hanford, Calif.; the Arizona Daily Sun, Flagstaff, Ariz.; The Daily Chronicle, DeKalb, Ill.; The Garden Island, Lihue, Hawaii; the Daily Journal, Park Hills, Mo.; The Lompoc Record, Lompoc, Calif.; and The Daily News, Rhinelander, Wis. The Company's newspaper operations also include the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, a group of 36 weekly papers and various niche publications. The Company's new media and interactive initiatives include STLtoday.com in St. Louis, azstarnet.com in Tucson, and Web sites for all of its other dailies. Pulitzer Inc. is the successor to the company originally founded by Joseph Pulitzer in St. Louis in 1878. For further information, visit our Web site at http://www.pulitzerinc.com/ . NOTES: This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current management expectations. Numerous factors may cause events to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements including regulatory and other factors. Many of the factors that will determine those events are beyond our capability to control or predict. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and therefore actual events may differ materially. Readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements which reflect management's view only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND WHERE TO FIND IT The proposed transaction will be submitted to Pulitzer's stockholders for their consideration, and Pulitzer has filed with the SEC a preliminary proxy statement (and will file a definitive proxy statement) to be used to solicit the stockholders' approval of the proposed transaction, as well as other relevant documents concerning the proposed transaction. STOCKHOLDERS OF PULITZER ARE URGED TO READ THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT REGARDING THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, AS WELL AS ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO THOSE DOCUMENTS, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. A free copy of the definitive proxy statement, as well as other filings containing information about Pulitzer, may be obtained at the SEC's Internet site ( http://www.sec.gov/ ) when it becomes available. Copies of the definitive proxy statement and the SEC filings that will be incorporated by reference in the definitive proxy statement can also be obtained, when available, without charge, by directing a request to James V. Maloney, Secretary, Pulitzer Inc., 900 North Tucker Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri 63101. PARTICIPANTS IN THE SOLICITATION Pulitzer and its directors and executive officers and other members of management and employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of Pulitzer in connection with the proposed transaction. Information regarding Pulitzer's directors and executive officers is available in Pulitzer's annual report on Form 10-K, which was filed with the SEC on March 17, 2005. Additional information regarding the interests of such potential participants will be included in the definitive proxy statement and the other relevant documents filed with the SEC when they become available. PULITZER INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES PERIOD REVENUE AND STATISTICAL REPORT (Revenue in thousands -- Unaudited) Four Four Thirteen Thirteen Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Mar. 27, Mar. 28, Mar. 27, Mar. 28, 2005 2004 Change 2005 2004 Change (Note 3) (Note 3) Consolidated Operating Revenue (Note 1): Advertising: Retail $ 9,450 $ 9,207 2.6% $ 27,837 $ 27,829 0.0% National 1,956 2,211 (11.5%) 6,209 6,161 0.8% Classified 10,734 10,517 2.1% 33,337 32,247 3.4% Total 22,140 21,935 0.9% 67,383 66,237 1.7% Preprints 5,733 5,122 11.9% 17,094 14,218 20.2% Total Advertising 27,873 27,057 3.0% 84,477 80,455 5.0% Circulation 6,250 6,328 (1.2%) 19,917 20,568 (3.2%) Other 612 499 22.6% 1,749 1,712 2.2% Total $34,735 $33,884 2.5% $106,143 $102,735 3.3% Operating Revenue of Consolidated Subsidiaries: St. Louis Operations (Note 2): Advertising $19,381 $19,434 (0.3%) $59,026 $57,545 2.6% Circulation 4,627 4,731 (2.2%) 14,822 15,388 (3.7%) Other 113 79 43.0% 412 449 (8.2%) Total $24,121 $24,244 (0.5%) $74,260 $73,382 1.2% Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc. Advertising $ 8,492 $ 7,623 11.4% $25,451 $22,910 11.1% Circulation 1,623 1,597 1.6% 5,095 5,180 (1.6%) Other 499 420 18.8% 1,337 1,263 5.9% Total $10,614 $ 9,640 10.1% $31,883 $29,353 8.6% Operating Revenue of Unconsolidated Newspaper Joint Venture: Pulitzer's 50% share of Tucson Newspaper Agency: Advertising $ 3,531 $ 3,332 6.0% $11,200 $10,378 7.9% Circulation 924 937 (1.4%) 2,974 3,028 (1.8%) Other 51 26 96.2% 162 117 38.5% Total $ 4,506 $ 4,295 4.9% $14,336 $13,523 6.0% Note 1 Year-to-year comparisons are affected by acquisitions of weekly newspapers, shoppers, and niche publications within the last 12 months that complement the Company's newspapers in several markets. On a comparable basis, excluding the impact of the acquisitions for comparable ownership periods in each year, advertising and total revenues would have increased as follows: Four Weeks Thirteen Weeks Comparable Change Comparable Change Total Total Pulitzer PNI Pulitzer PNI Advertising Revenue 2.4% 9.4% 4.4% 9.0% Total Revenue 2.0% 8.4% 2.8% 6.9% Note 2 Includes revenues of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis, St. Louis e-media operations, and STL Distribution Services. Note 3 Certain reclassifications have been made to the 2004 financial statements and statistical data to conform with the presentation made in 2005. PULITZER INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES PERIOD REVENUE AND STATISTICAL REPORT SELECTED STATISTICAL INFORMATION Four Four Thirteen Thirteen Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Mar. 27, Mar 28, Mar. 27, Mar. 28, 2005 2004 Change 2005 2004 Change (Note 3) (Note 3) Advertising Linage (in thousands of inches): ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: Advertising Inches Full run (all zones) Retail 48.6 56.6 (14.1%) 145.3 172.4 (15.7%) National 11.1 14.6 (24.0%) 40.2 42.0 (4.3%) Classified 70.8 74.8 (5.3%) 224.0 229.7 (2.5%) Total 130.5 146.0 (10.6%) 409.5 444.1 (7.8%) Part run (Retail/ Classified) 28.8 35.8 (19.6%) 93.8 130.4 (28.1%) Total Inches 159.3 181.8 (12.4%) 503.3 574.5 (12.4%) TUCSON NEWSPAPER AGENCY: Star/Citizen advertising inches Full run (all zones) Retail 110.4 116.5 (5.2%) 354.4 363.0 (2.4%) National 8.6 7.0 17.1% 22.8 21.7 5.1% Classified 119.7 131.8 (9.2%) 375.3 393.8 (4.7%) Total 238.3 255.3 (6.7%) 752.5 778.5 (3.3%) Part run (Retail/ Classified) 2.0 1.4 42.9% 6.1 5.3 15.1% Total Inches 240.3 256.7 (6.4%) 758.6 783.8 (3.2%) Circulation (Note 4): Four Four Thirteen Thirteen Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Mar. 27, Mar. 28, Mar. 27, Mar. 28, 2005 2004 Change 2005 2004 Change ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: Daily 281,005 283,201 (0.8%) 284,894 281,339 1.3% Sunday 444,002 461,651 (3.8%) 445,714 454,998 (2.0%) COMBINED PULITZER NEWSPAPERS, INC.: Daily 194,084 192,764 0.7% 192,019 191,569 0.2% Sunday 188,993 188,195 0.4% 187,419 188,483 (0.6%) TUCSON NEWSPAPER AGENCY: Star Daily 115,703 113,773 1.7% 115,232 113,365 1.6% Citizen Daily 31,557 33,273 (5.2%) 30,981 33,107 (6.4%) Combined Daily 147,260 147,046 0.1% 146,213 146,472 (0.2%) Star Sunday 179,356 179,442 (0.0%) 179,003 180,076 (0.6%) Online Page Views (in thousands): Four Four Thirteen Thirteen Weeks Weeks Weeks Weeks Ended Ended Ended Ended Mar. 27, Mar. 28, Mar. 27, Mar. 28, 2005 2004 Change 2005 2004 Change (Note 3) (Note 3) St. Louis 36,097 30,251 19.3% 111,658 95,714 16.7% Combined PNI Web sites 10,974 9,554 14.9% 31,194 26,251 18.8% Combined Tucson Web sites 10,060 7,030 43.1% 27,900 20,340 37.2% Totals 57,131 46,835 22.0% 170,752 142,305 20.0% Note 4 Year-to-date circulation levels represent averages (unaudited) for the current ABC annual audit periods ending September 30 and December 31 for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Tucson Newspaper Agency, respectively. Year-to-date PNI amounts represent combined averages (unaudited) for the annual periods ending December 31. DATASOURCE: Pulitzer Inc. CONTACT: James V. Maloney, Director of Shareholder Relations, of Pulitzer Inc., +1-314-340-8402 Web site: http://www.pulitzerinc.com/

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