New York Times Co reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter as total subscribers to the news giant passed 10 million.

Adjusted earnings rose to US$0.37/share, the company said Wednesday, beating the $0.29 average of estimates. Sales rose 9.3% from the year prior to $598.3-million, exceeding expectations of $589.8-million.

The publisher has succeeded in selling a combined package of offerings including its flagship newspaper, the product review site Wirecutter, the sports site the Athletic, and its Cooking and Games apps. Total subscribers rose to 10.1 million, meeting Wall Street estimates. The company has set a goal of 15 million total subscribers by 2027.

“We expect the bundle to enhance our resiliency, and further us down the path to building a larger, more profitable company,” CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said in the statement.

The Times has been a bright spot in a bleak environment for newspapers and magazines, which continue to lose advertisers and readers to digital outlets. Shares rose 2.5% at 7.06am in early trading in New York. The company’s stock has been up 28% this year.

Digital subscribers increased by about 210 000 to 9.4 million, even after the newspaper raised subscription prices earlier this year. That led to subscription revenue growth of 16% versus the year prior, the company said.

Online advertising was a positive driver for the company. Print advertising revenues also increased after declining in the second quarter.

Headwinds

The New York Times, like other media publishers, has been hit with headwinds and internal troubles as it seeks subscriber growth. It disbanded its sports section in July, handing coverage instead to the Athletic, the sports site it purchased in 2022.

Its peer the Washington Post, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, announced in October it would lay off 240 people after being overly optimistic in its revenue projections. In November, Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch said the magazine publisher would slash 5% of its workforce. — Jessica Nix, (c) 2023 Bloomberg LP