New York Times posts upbeat results on boost from digital subscriptions

(Reuters) - New York Times beat estimates for first-quarter revenue and profit on Wednesday, as its bundled content offering attracted more subscribers to its website and app ahead of major sporting events and the 2024 U.S. presidential elections.

The publisher of the New York Times newspaper has focused more on bundling its core news with other content ranging from podcasts to cooking recipes and games to attract readers and drive revenue growth.

The company reported revenue of $594 million, compared with analysts' estimates of $591.9 million, according to LSEG data. On an adjusted basis, it earned 31 cents per share, compared with the estimates of 20 cents.

Subscription revenue rose nearly 8% to $429 million, while revenue from digital-only products rose more than 13% on higher demand for its bundled and multiproduct offerings.

The company, however, added 210,000 digital-only subscribers in the first quarter, compared with 300,000 in the preceding three months.

New York Times expects total subscription revenue to rise between 6% and 8%, slightly above analysts' estimates, and total advertising revenues to grow in the low-single digits for the second quarter.

Total advertising revenue for the quarter fell 2.4% to $103.7 million, despite a near 3% rise in digital ad sales, its biggest revenue generator.

"We continue to feel the impact of some marketers avoiding certain hard news topics last quarter," CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said on a post earnings conference call.

However, the company is seeing a pickup in advertiser demand in the second quarter, Kopit added.

Its sports-focused Athletic publication, however, reported a 33% jump in total revenue and an 18% rise in subscription revenue.

Marketers are moving away from print and towards digital and sports advertising to capture a younger and larger audience. New York Times reported a drop of about 10% in print advertising revenue and a 2% drop in subscription revenue for the business.

(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)