Gannett sees decline in Q1 publishing, TV revenue

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Publishing revenue at the largest U.S. newspaper chain is expected to decline in the first quarter, fresh evidence that the sector is still struggling despite an overall ad rebound.

Gannett Co (GCI.N), which publishes USA Today and owns broadcast TV stations, said it expects publishing revenue to be down in the range of 6 percent to 7 percent this quarter, the company said on Thursday.

During the fourth quarter, publishing revenue at Gannett fell almost 5 percent.

Television revenue is expected to drop a little over 2 percent in the first quarter, reflecting the absence of Olympic and political ad spending that occurred in the same quarter a year ago.

Gannett estimates first-quarter earnings per share of 41 cents, in line with analysts forecast of 41 cents per share according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Shares of Gannett closed down 2.9 percent at $14.93.

(Reporting by Jennifer Saba; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)