New York Times February ad revenue falls

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Times Co advertising revenue declined by 6.6 percent in February, the newspaper publisher said on Tuesday, a day after it settled with dissident shareholders to avoid a costly proxy fight.

Overall revenue from continuing operations fell 2.6 percent in February compared with a year earlier, the company said. It added that it expects March results to be hurt by the early timing of the Easter holiday.

On Monday, the Times agreed to allow a dissident investor group to run two director nominees on its board slate at the April 22 annual meeting to avert a proxy fight.

The group, comprised of hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners and investment firm Firebrand Partners, had amassed a 19 percent stake in the Times and had urged its management to move more aggressively into digital media to boost its performance.

Since the group launched its campaign in late January, Times management has shown more openness to reviewing its portfolio and said in March that nothing at the company was "sacred" except the flagship newspaper.

Ad revenue at the news media group fell 7.8 percent in February, largely from weaker classified advertising, a category that analysts expect will be dominated by Internet sales.

Ad sales at the division that operates The New York Times newspaper fell 4.1 percent.

Ad revenue in the New England Media Group and the regional newspaper group declined 11.6 percent and 15.8 percent, respectively, and will likely bolster calls for the eventual sale of those divisions.

Internet ad revenue in the news media group rose 14.4 percent. Ad revenue at its Internet division, the About Group, rose 20.9 percent, boosted by growth in cost-per-click advertising and the purchase of ConsumerSearch.com.

(Reporting by Franklin Paul and Michele Gershberg, editing by Gerald E. McCormick and John Wallace)