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Company Information

Company at a Glance

Industry:
Media
Fiscal Year-End:
Jun 10

Company Overview

NWS is an international media company engaged in the publication of newspapers, magazines and books; production and distribution of movies and TV series; TV broadcasting; cable and satellite subscriber TV; production of inserts; and owns and develops internet properties. NWS conducts its operations primarily in the US, the UK, Australia and Asia. Its listed interests include British Sky Broadcasting.

Company History

In 1953, Rupert Murdoch started building the world's fourth-largest media group. News Corp now owns 120 Australian newspapers (including The Australian and Daily Telegraph), has one third of the UK national newspapers market and publishes the New York Post. Since 1980, News Corp has expanded into film (20th Century Fox), US TV, international pay TV and Online assets.

Industries Of Operation

NWS is one of the world's larger media companies and has operations in more than 70 countries. It offers entertainment and news services through interests in a variety of media, including 1) Newspapers (NY Post, several UK papers and 120 in Australia), 2) Books (HarperCollins), 3) Cable and Satellite Television (Fox, BSkyB, STAR), 4) Film (20th Century Fox), 5) Magazines and Inserts, 6) Television (Fox Broadcasting), 7) Satellite TV (Sky Italia) and 8) Other (Fox Interactive).

Differentiating Factor

A key differentiating factor lies in News Corp's international presence and diversification, by both medium (newspapers, TV, satellite, books) and geography. It has also built a strong position in content provision (for example, TV series and films) and delivery platforms (for example, Fox TV stations, cable and satellite TV). Even in the realm of international media companies (such as Viacom and Disney), these characteristics make News Corp unique.

Major Customers & Competitors

In film, NWS's customers are film distributors and ultimately the public. Competitors include Disney and MGM. In TV, the Fox Broadcasting Network derives revenue from advertising. Competitors are CBS, NBC and ABC. The cable network derives ad revenue and per-sub sales to cable companies, competing with other cable channels such as CNN. In newspapers, revenue is derived from advertising and circulation. Main competitors are The Daily Mirror in the UK and The Sydney Morning Herald in Australia.

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Market Statistics

Market Cap ($M):
44,907
Equiv. Shares (M):
2,620
% All Ords:
0.56
12Mth Range ($):
8.93 - 18.41
Turnover ($M pa):
8,299
Index:
S&P/ASX 50
Sector:
Consumer Discretionary
Industry Group:
Media
Industry:
Media
Sub Industry:
Movies & Entertainment

Last 5 Market Sensitive Announcements

Date
Announcment
04-Feb-10 12:52
Half Yearly Report and Accounts
03-Feb-10 08:13
News Corporation (NWS) 2Q10 Earnings
01-Feb-10 09:12
Settles with Valassis Communications for $500M
22-Dec-09 09:18
SEC Form 8K
05-Nov-09 08:11
News Corporation (NWS) 1Q10 Earnings

Calendar Of Events

Date
Event
14-Apr-10
Dividend Date Payable for Half Yearly Result (7.5c 0% franked)
10-Mar-10
Dividend Record Date for Half Yearly Result (7.5c 0% franked)
03-Mar-10
Dividend Ex-Dividend Date for Half Yearly Result (7.5c 0% franked)
03-Feb-10
Reporting Date for Half Yearly Result
16-Oct-09
AGM Date for Final Year Result

Directors

Name
Position
K R Murdoch
Chairman
P Barnes
Director
P Chernin
Director
K Cowley
Director
D DeVoe
Director
Proffessor V Dinh
Director
R Eddington
Director
A Knight
Director
L Murdoch
Director
T Perkins
Director
S Shuman
Director
A M Siskind
Director
J L Thornton
Director
J Murdoch
Director
M Hurd
Director

Management

Name
Position
K R Murdoch
CEO
D F DeVoe
CFO
P Chernin
President & COO News Corp.
A M Siskind
Group General Counsel

Substantial Shareholders

Name
% Holding
Cruden Investments
29.8
Citigroup Inc
10.7
Liberty Media Corporation
9.2
Fidelity Int.
7.2

Consensus Recommendation Summary


0
0
1
3
3
Sell Under Perf. Hold Out Perf. Buy

Number of Brokers in Recommendation Summary: 7

Consensus Earnings

FY10 FY11
Consensus EPS1 (c) 90.3 108.8
EPS Growth (%)   20.5
P/E Ratio (x) 19.2 15.9
P/E Rel. All Ords (x) 1.30 1.30
P/E Rel. Sector (x) 1.20 1.40
Number of Brokers in Earnings Survey: 5 5

1. Consensus EPS is generally "reported EPS" but will vary as to whether it is on a pre or post preference earnings basis. This number is not always on the same basis as the Aegis EPS.

Historical Forecast Earnings And Recommendations

Consensus Recommendations

Consensus information provided by Reuters.

Consensus EPS Forecasts 1

1. Consensus EPS is generally "reported EPS" but will vary as to whether it is on a pre or post preference earnings basis. This number is not always on the same basis as the Aegis EPS.

Peer Recommendation Comparison

  P/E (x) EPS Chg (%) Dividend Yield (%) MktCap ($M) Price ($) Consensus Rec
  09A 09A 09A    
News Corporation 18.6 (29) 1.0 45,457 17.35 Out Perf.
Fairfax Media 14.1 (51) 1.2 4,057 1.70 Out Perf.
Consolidated Media Holdings 25.1 (19) 5.4 2,092 3.03 Out Perf.
Ten Network 29.8 (42) 1.2 1,744 1.66 Hold
Austar n/a n/a n/a 1,547 1.22 Out Perf.

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