Cox Coming in Fuzzy: Fool by Numbers

On Feb. 27, Cox Radio (NYSE: CXR  ) , which operates 80 stations in 18 markets, released fourth-quarter earnings for the period ended Dec. 31.

• The GAAP net loss of $88 million was affected by a $176 million writedown of impaired intangible assets.
• The stock is broadcasting a barely audible one-star rating in Motley Fool CAPS.

(Figures in millions, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

	Q4 2006	Q4 2005	Change
Sales	$113.0	$108.9	3.8%
Net Profit	($88.0)	$5.5	N/A
EPS	($0.93)	$0.05	N/A
Diluted Shares	95.1	99.2	(4.2%)

Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

	Q4 2006	Q4 2005	Change*
Gross Margin	80.1%	79.8%	0.4
Operating Margin	(120.3%)	20.8%	(141.1)
Net Margin	(77.9%)	5.0%	(82.9)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights
2,530 words in the press release, yet no balance sheet. Troubling.

Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights

	Q4 2006	Q4 2005	Change
Cash From Ops.	--	--	N/A
Capital Expenditures	$3.0	$2.6	17.1%
Free Cash Flow*	$25.4	$25.2	0.5%

*As defined by the company.

Find out why Fools always follow the money.

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Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean. This data has been provided by Netscribes. To provide feedback on this article, please click on the "feedback" button below.