Lagardere announced results for the fourth quarter and full year, with quarterly publishing sales flat at €799 million. For the year, sales were €2.87 billion, up 2.2 percent as reported and 1.9 percent on a like-for-like basis. EBITDA grew 34.7 percent to €295 million and recurring EBIT gained 14 percent to €593 million. In the US, sales at Hachette Book Group for the year were up 7 percent, boosted by books including The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, The Housemaid by Freida McFadden, and Eruption by James Patterson and Michael Crichton. In a statement, ceo David Shelley said that the […]
Earnings Reports
Storytel Hits a Quarterly Sales Record
Swedish audiobook company Storytel announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2024. Fourth quarter sales were SEK1.028 billion, up 9 percent—the first time the company has exceeded SEK1 billion in a quarter, influenced particularly by strong results in the publishing segment. Operating profit was SEK136 million, up from a loss of SEK(-680) million. EBITDA was SEK223 million, compared to a loss of SEK(-7) million during the same period last year. Streaming sales for the company were up 7 percent to SEK879 million and publishing sales grew 15 percent to SEK332 million. For the year, sales were up […]
Christian Publishing, Digital Sales Up at Harper Collins
News Corp announced results for the second quarter ended December 31, reporting sales at Harper Collins of $595 million, up 8 percent. On a call with investors, News Corp ceo Robert Thomson attributed the growth to Bible sales and strong performance from Harper Collins UK. Top titles in the quarter included Cher’s memoir, Gregory Maguire’s Wicked, and Laurie Gilmore’s The Pumpkin Spice Café. EBITDA grew 19 percent to $101 million due to the increase in overall sales in print and digital, “partially offset by higher manufacturing costs due to higher sales volume and higher employee costs.” The company reports that […]
Bookstore Sales Fall at WH Smith as the Company Looks to Sell
WH Smith offered a brief trading update for the 21 weeks ended January 25. Sales for the high street business — which the company is looking to sell — were down 6 percent in the period, or down 3 percent on a “like-for-like” basis at constant currency, “in line with expectations.” They expect to save £11 million in costs for the full year within the segment. The travel business delivered a 7 percent increase in sales, or 6 percent like-for-like. Sales at the company overall rose 3 percent in the period.
Waterstones Results Improve
Waterstones filed a report for its fiscal year ending April 27, 2024 with the UK’s Companies House, reporting increased sales following the full integration of results from the acquired Blackwells and Foyles into their results. Sales were £528 million, up from £453 million the prior year, and operating profit rebounded to £43.8 million, up from £13.9 million. The previous year they suffered from “disruptions to the distribution center, caused by the implementation of a new warehouse management system.” As of the end of the previous fiscal year, the company was in the process of refinancing a £77.9 million term loan […]
Pearson to Release AI Skill-Building Tools with Microsoft
Pearson released a brief trading update for the fourth quarter and the full year 2024, and announced an AI partnership with Microsoft. Pearson and Microsoft will release a series of educational tools designed to help people build AI skills “through new AI credentials and certifications.” The companies will also collaborate on a series of AI tools to build workforce skills and learn the English language. Pearson will also expand their use of Microsoft’s AI Copilot tool “across its workforce.” They say in a release, “This is part of an ongoing effort to introduce workplace AI tools that enhance efficiency, creativity, […]