Wired News – Media Behemoth Meredith Plans Layoffs, Sale of Magazines Post Acquisition of Time Inc.

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LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / March 26, 2018 / Active-Investors.com has just released a free research report on Meredith Corp. (NYSE: MDP). If you want access to this report all you need to do is sign up now by clicking the following link www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=MDP as the Company's latest news hit the wire. On March 21, 2018, the Company revealed that it has lined up several initiatives as a part of its integration strategy post the acquisition of Time Inc. Meredith had announced the acquisition of Time Inc. and its bouquet of established magazine brands in November 2017 in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.8 billion and completed the deal in January 2018. Register today and get access to over 1,000 Free Research Reports by joining our site below:

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Meredith's four-pronged strategy for integration and improving financial performance

After completing an in-depth review of all Time Inc.'s businesses, Meredith revealed its action plan and strategy aimed at integration of its businesses with Time Inc.'s businesses. The Company will focus on four broad areas including:

• Review of its portfolio of media assets and look to divest non-core businesses like sale of TIME, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Money magazines;

• Focus on improving advertising and circulation of Time Inc.'s media assets to bring them on par with current industry standards;

• Increase revenue and profit margins of Time Inc. digital properties in-line with Meredith's levels;

• Realize annual cost synergies between $400 million to $500 million within first two years of operations.

Sharing his views on the matter, Tom Harty, President and CEO of Meredith, stated:

"We have made significant progress executing on these initiatives since we closed on the acquisition just six weeks ago. For example, today we are announcing we have completed our portfolio review and decided to explore the sale of the TIME, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Money brands. These are attractive properties with strong consumer reach. However, they have different target audiences and advertising bases, and we believe each brand is better suited for success with a new owner."

However, Meredith did not reveal if it has already signed any agreements for the sale these publications. Meredith has already announced the sale of several other Time Inc.'s assets like Time Inc. UK and Golf. Going forward, Meredith plans to launch a brand-new sales and marketing strategy which will fully leverage the Company's media portfolio and its digital reach. The Company plans to share these detailed plans during the all-employee meeting scheduled to start from March 28, 2018.

The Company is confident of offering the best of its targeted consumer-reach strategies and innovative marketing solutions to its clients given its enviable portfolio of " multiplatform powerhouse brands".

Planned Layoffs

The Company also announced the reduction in its employee strength as a part of its cost-cutting strategy aimed at annual cost synergies ranging from $400 million to $500 million. The Company revealed that it has already notified nearly 200 employees about the layoffs. Meredith is planning to eliminate additional 1000+ positions in the next 10 months. The Company had previously eliminated nearly 600 positions when it moved its subscription fulfillment operations to a lower-cost provider. Meredith has clarified that these layoffs are part of its previously shared plans of eliminating duplicate positions and consolidation of certain functions at the Company's headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa. The low operational costs at Des Moines was also a key deciding factor in this decision. The current layoffs do not include the impact of any potential divestitures.

About Meredith Corp.

Des Moines, Iowa-based Meredith is a leading media and publishing Company which has its presence across platforms including broadcast television, print, digital, mobile, and video. The Company has been in the field of journalism for over 115 years and owns or operates 17 TV stations with viewership reaching 11% of households in the US. The Company's stations produce 700 hours of local news and entertainment content each week.

Meredith's National Media Group is a leading creator and distributor of content for consumer interest areas such as food, home, parenting, and lifestyle through well-known brands such as Better Homes & Gardens, All recipes, Parents, and Shape. The Company reaches out to over 110 million unduplicated women every month, including more than 70% of Millennial women in US.

Meredith also has brand licencing agreements for over 3,000 SKUs of branded products at 5,000 Walmart stores across the US.

Meredith Xcelerated Marketing is an award-winning creative agency that provides fully integrated marketing solutions for many of the world's top brands, including The Kraft Heinz Co., Bank of America, WebMD, Volkswagen, and NBC Universal.

Stock Performance Snapshot

March 23, 2018 - At Friday's closing bell, Meredith's stock was marginally down 0.19%, ending the trading session at $52.75.

Volume traded for the day: 502.12 thousand shares.

After last Friday's close, Meredith's market cap was at $2.39 billion.

Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio was at 16.82.

The stock has a dividend yield of 4.13%.

The stock is part of the Services sector, categorized under the Publishing - Periodicals industry.

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