Thomson Reuters reports revenue drop

Thomson Reuters, the parent company of the business-focused wire service, reported a decline in revenue in its markets and legal divisions, but its CEO said its future performance would improve.

Robert MacMillan of Reuters writes, “Markets division revenue fell 4 percent to $1.86 billion excluding currency in the third quarter. The legal unit, the largest part of the company’s professional division by revenue and operating profit, posted a 1 percent decline in revenue.

“Revenue from ongoing businesses, excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, fell 2 percent to $3.21 billion. That compared to the average analyst forecast of $3.23 billion.

“‘Financial firms are watching costs and being very careful on spending money, so a lot of discretionary expenses regarding services are being cut back,’ said Benchmark Co analyst Edward Atorino.

“The company, formed last year by the merger of Thomson Corp and Reuters Group Plc, said underlying operating profit rose 3 percent to $711 million, from $690 million a year earlier.”

Read more here. Revenue in the media operations fell to $90 million from $105 million in the same quarter a year ago.