NEW YORK, N.Y. – Thomson Reuters said Tuesday it is getting rid of 3,000 jobs, as it expects to record US$350 million of accounting items related to cost-cutting.
The company, which provides professional information and news services, said the job losses represent about five per cent of its total workforce, and are mainly in the financial and risk business unit, which accounts for more than half of its total revenue.
The jobs are in addition to cuts of about 2,500 announced earlier this year.
The accounting charge is related to an accelerated cost-saving and simplification program, said Thomson Reuters Inc. (TSX:TRI).
The charge, which will be reflected primarily in the fourth quarter with a smaller amount to be recorded in 2014, was announced along with Thomson’s third-quarter results.
Thomson Reuters also announced that it will spend up to US$1 billion on stock buybacks by the end of 2014 and contribute $500 million to its U.S. and U.K. defined benefit pension plans in the fourth quarter.
During the third-quarter that ended Sept. 30, revenue from the company’s financial and risk business unit was down compared with a year ago, offsetting gains in Thomson’s smaller units.
Thomson Reuters reported its total revenue for the three months fell to US$3.08 billion from US$3.18 billion, under standard accounting and before currency adjustments.
Net income under standard accounting dropped to US$283 million from $453 million. Diluted earnings under standard accounting was 33 cents per share, down from 53 cents per share a year earlier.
Adjusted earnings were 48 cents per share, flat with a year earlier and four cents better than analysts expected.
The 13 estimates compiled by Thomson showed analysts were looking for 44 cents per share of adjusted earnings in the third quarter and 26 cents per share of net income under standard accounting.
Its shares closed at a new 52-week high after advancing $1.26 or 3.38 per cent to $38.58 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
— With files from The Associated Press
