Sharewatch: Dismal Trading Sees Media Stocks Plummet

A disappointing day’s trading yesterday saw all but a handful of media stocks lose value from their share price. United Business Media lost 3.56% to close at 453˝p following its announcement of disappointing advertising volumes for its American technology publishing business.

Elsewhere, advertising heavyweight WPP lost 2.24% to close down at 523˝p. This morning sees the company unveil impressive revenue increases in its third quarter trading update, reporting a 4% rise over the past quarter to £1.06 billion.

ITV also saw a downturn, losing 3.34% to close at 101źp as investment bankers, Lehman Brothers, replaced the company with Reuters in its European recommended portfolio.

Yesterday saw the broadcaster unveil its on-screen branding for ITV3, the company’s latest digital channel, due to launch next week. Aimed at older viewers, the channel will counteract recent criticism that too many digital channels are cannibalising each others viewers (see Dawn Airey Issues Attack On “Sleepwalking” Broadcasters).

Magazine giant Emap was also hit by yesterday’s sluggish trading, losing 2.04% to close at 770p. The company recently announced the launch of Grazia, the UK’s first weekly glossy for women in an attempt to replicate the success enjoyed by Zoo in the men’s market.

The title, developed from the Italian magazine of the same name, will launch with a budget of more than £16 million over the next three years (see Emap Launches Grazia As UK’s First Weekly Glossy).

The FTSE 100 performed poorly yesterday, losing 50.9 points to close at 4,564.5, while the FTSE 250 lost 45.6 points to close at 6,241.6.

The closing prices of media company shares on Monday were: