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what it is
Lee runs local news, advertising, subscriptions, and web services for 2,230 employees across the U.S.
how it gets paid
Last year Lee Enterprises made $562M in revenue. Digital advertising and marketing services was the main engine at $225M, or 40% of sales.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 8.0% last year. EDGAR shows revenue down 10% vs. prior year.
what just happened
Lee’s latest quarter brought in $130M of revenue and -$0.92 in EPS.
At a glance
C balance sheet — red flag territory — real financial stress
15/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
3.2% return on capital — nothing to write home about
-$4.35 fy2024 eps est
$50M fy2026 rev est
xvary composite: 11/100 — weak
What they do
Lee runs local news, advertising, subscriptions, and web services for 2,230 employees across the U.S.
Lee was founded in 1890 and still serves local markets with 2,230 employees. Digital revenue was 54% of Q1 2026 revenue, so you get a business that is less print-heavy than it used to be. Digital subscriptions means readers paying online, not one-off paper buyers, and that matters when annual revenue is $562M and long-term debt is $474M.
How they make money
$562M
annual revenue · their business grew -8.0% last year
Digital advertising and marketing services
$225M
8.0%
Print advertising
$155M
10.0%
Subscriptions and circulation
$100M
6.0%
Commercial printing and content services
$50M
4.0%
Niche publications and other
$32M
flat
The products that matter
digital ad sales
Digital Advertising & Marketing
$70M last quarter · 54% of revenue
it generated $70M last quarter and now makes up 54% of total revenue. it also reached 71% of ad sales, so this is where the company is trying to rebuild the business.
main growth engine
reader revenue
Print & Digital Subscriptions
$112M annual segment revenue
this $112M segment still matters because subscription dollars are steadier than ad dollars. the problem is that it sits inside a 72-paper footprint where print demand keeps eroding.
stability, not speed
balance sheet repair
Strategic Equity Investment
$50M raise at $3.25 per share
this is not a product in the usual sense. it is the move keeping the turnaround alive. management said the $50M raise cuts annual interest cost by about $18M, which buys time.
buys time
Key numbers
$562M
annual revenue
That is the size of the business before debt gets its cut.
$474M
long-term debt
Debt is almost as large as sales, so small cash misses matter a lot.
0.8%
operating margin
The core business is basically breakeven, which leaves little room for error.
-$4.35
fy2024 eps
You are paying for a company that lost $4.35 per share last year.
Financial health
C
strength
- balance sheet grade C — very weak — significant financial distress
- risk rank 5 — safer than 5% of stocks
- price stability 10 / 100
- long-term debt $474M (69% of capital)
C — balance sheet grade and long-term debt are flagged. this stock carries more risk than average.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for LEE right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
Lee’s latest quarter brought in $130M of revenue and -$0.92 in EPS.
EDGAR shows revenue down 10% vs. prior year. The company also said digital revenue was 54% of Q1 2026 revenue, which helps, but it did not stop the top line from shrinking.
$130M
revenue
-$0.92
eps
10.0%
revenue vs. last year
the number that mattered
The $130M revenue figure mattered most because it was 10% below last year and kept the shrink story alive.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is too much debt on a shrinking print base.
med
Debt still overwhelms the equity story
Net debt is $443M against a market cap of about $209M. The $50M equity deal helps, but you are still looking at a capital structure that leaves little room for another stumble.
If revenue keeps sliding, debt service stays in charge of the timeline.
med
Print is still shrinking faster than you want
Print advertising fell 15% from last year and still accounts for $123M of annual revenue. That is not legacy noise. It is still a meaningful part of the company.
At the current pace, that segment loses roughly $18M of annual revenue.
med
The digital shift has to offset more than headlines
Digital revenue is 54% of total revenue, which sounds like the turn already happened. It did not. The company still lost $0.92 per share, so digital growth has not yet solved the earnings problem.
If the digital mix stalls while print keeps fading, the whole turnaround case weakens fast.
The debt stack is more than 2x the ~$209M market cap, and the $123M print advertising segment is still falling 15% from last year. Those two numbers decide the risk profile.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
digital revenue mix after q1's 54%
If that number slips back while print keeps falling, the transition story loses credibility fast. If it rises again, you at least know the direction is still right.
risk
net debt after the $50M recap
Management said the raise should cut annual interest by about $18M. You want to see the debt line move, not just hear the promise again.
calendar
annual meeting on april 6, 2026
Listen for digital subscription progress, debt paydown, and whether the 2026 digital targets still look reachable.
trend
director buying after the financing
David Henry Hoffmann bought 10,600 shares in late February and 27,800 more in early March. That does not prove the thesis. It does show board-level conviction after dilution.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
15 / 100
in human-speak, the numbers are unstable and you should expect surprises.
risk rank
5
Only 5% of stocks in the dataset rank as riskier. This is not a stock you buy for smooth compounding.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for LEE is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$5
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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