JRN Earnings: Revenue Increased 7.8 Percent During 2014

• Q4 Revenue increased 13.6%

Journal Communications, Inc. today issued its earnings report for Q4 2014 and the entire year.Fourth

Q4 2014 Highlights and Changes from Q4 2013:

• Revenue of $122.0 million, up 13.6%; up 11.1% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Television revenue of $60.0 million, up 32.9%; up 29.9% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Radio revenue of $22.1 million, up 7.7%; up 5.5% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Television retransmission revenue of $9.8 million, up 65.2%; up 60.0% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Political revenue of $11.9 million compared to $0.4 million in 2013.
• Publishing revenue of $40.0 million, down 4.3%; down 6.5% excluding the fiscal year change.

2014 Highlights and Changes from Full Year 2013:

• Revenue of $428.4 million, up 7.8%; up 7.2% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Political and Olympics revenue of $21.1 million, compared to $1.6 million in 2013.
• Television revenue up 20.5%; up 19.7% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Radio revenue up 3.0%; up 2.4% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Retransmission revenue of $39.0 million, up 78.0%; up 76.6% excluding the fiscal year change.
• Publishing revenue of $149.0 million down 3.6%; down 4.2% excluding the fiscal year change.

Steven J. Smith

“Journal Communications delivered a solid fourth quarter. Results were driven by political and issue advertising, gains in retransmission revenue and local revenue growth in radio. Consolidated revenue of $122.0 million was up 13.6% compared to 2013, though up 11.1% excluding the change in our fiscal year in 2014,” said Steven J. Smith, Chairman and CEO of Journal Communications.

“Within the television group, revenue was up 33%, or 30% excluding the fiscal year change and radio revenue was up almost 8%, or more than 5% excluding the fiscal year change. Television retransmission revenue grew to $9.8 million in the quarter. Publishing saw revenue down 4%, or more than 6% excluding the change in fiscal year. Publishing also remained focused on cost cutting efforts, resulting in almost $2 million in workforce reduction charges in the quarter with annualized savings of more than $3.2 million from our workforce actions in 2014. Publishing costs were down more than 6%, excluding these charges and the change in the fiscal year.

“The balance sheet of the company remained strong as we reduced debt by almost $78 million and increased cash balances to more than $13 million, leaving us net debt of just over $117 million at the end of 2014.”

Meanwhile, The E.W. Scripps Company and Journal Communications yesterday received approval from their shareholders for their proposed spinoffs and mergers.

Upon closing of the transactions, Scripps and Journal will merge their broadcast operations, creating an expanded Scripps, while simultaneously spinning off and merging their newspaper operations to form a new publicly traded company called Journal Media Group.

The transactions are expected to close early in the second quarter of 2015. The merged broadcast and digital media company will retain The E.W. Scripps Company name, and the Scripps family shareholders will continue to have voting control. The company will have approximately 4,000 employees across its television, radio and digital media operations.

Journal Media Group will combine Scripps' daily newspapers, community publications and related digital products with Journal Communications' Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin community publications and affiliated digital products. The company, with approximately 3,600 employees, will operate in 14 markets and be headquartered in Milwaukee.