Valassis Revenue Up in Second Quarter

Valassis, the alternative media company, posted a 2.9% increase in second-quarter revenue—to $217.3 million, compared with the same period last year.

But the firm suffered an $11 million shortfall in its freestanding insert revenue, thanks to a deliberate cutback in the supply of direct response pages, and a loss of e-commerce advertising.

The Livonia, MI-based company reduced the availability of direct response pages earlier this year in a move to improve pricing. This strategy succeeded, and the firm now plans to begin gradually increasing DR pages in the second half.

FSI revenue for the quarter totaled $147.6 million, the company said.

Earnings totaled $33.7 million, or .62 cents per share, within the publicized range, the firm said.

One-on-one revenue, for products that target individuals, totaled $10.6 million.

Revenue was slower than expected for non-consolidated investments like Valassis Relationship Marketing Systems, Save.com, Coupons.Com and Independent Delivery Services. The company posted a $700,000 loss for these investments.

The firm was able to save money on paper by increasing its use of a "super-calendared plus" stock.