News Corp NWSA , the parent of MarketWatch publisher Dow Jones, reported fiscal third-quarter results on Thursday that beat expectations, helped by revenue trends outside advertising and a “decidedly more positive” economic backdrop, and the media company said it expected to save more than it once expected from planned layoffs. Shares rose 1.7% in after-hours trade on the news.
The company — also the parent of the publisher HarperCollins and, under the Dow Jones banner, media outlets like Barron’s and the Wall Street Journal — reported net income of $59 million, or 9 cents a share, compared with $104 million, or 14 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Revenue fell 2% to $2.45 billion, compared with $2.49 billion in the prior-year quarter, with currency fluctuations weighing on the top-line figure.