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News Corp shares gain after strong Q1

News Corp shares gain after strong Q1

Shares in News Corp (ASX:NWS) gained 4.24% on Thursday, after the company revealed it had grown its Q1 operating income by 21%.

News Corp reported an operating income of US$1.39 billion ($1.36 billion), from 7% higher profit of US$533 million.

But net profit for the quarter fell to US$738 million, from US$775 million a year ago, in a result partly blamed on the closure of Britain's News of the World following the high-profile phone hacking scandal.

The shut-down contributed to a 38% decrease in operating income from the company's publishing segment to US$110 million, and to a pre-tax restructuring charge of US$91 million.

By contrast, the company's cable broadcasting segment turned in 18% higher operating income of US$775 million.

Gains were also recorded across News Corp's remaining core operating segments – filmed entertainment, television, and satellite television.

With MySpace no longer a drain following News Corp's US$35 million sale of the property in June, operating losses from the “other” segment fell by US$57 million to US$99 million. News Corp had paid US$580 million for the social network in 2005, but the site has been consistently bleeding customers to Facebook and Twitter.

CEO Rupert Murdoch gave an upbeat outlook for the rest of the year, stating that the company expected to be able to “build upon these results in the coming quarters.”

But he added that the company “continue[s] to remain mindful of the persistent economic uncertainty in many parts of the globe.”

NWS shares closed out at $17.210 on Thursday.

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Tags mediafinancial resultsnews corpRupert MurdochASX:NWS

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