Bertelsmann issued a first quarter overview and said that for the full year, they expect both “revenues and operating profit to decline.” Sales from continuing operations were 3.5 billion euros for the quarter, down 8 percent from 3.8 billion euros a year ago. Operating EBIT fell sharply at 115 million euros, compared to 253 million euros a year ago, and they recorded a net operating loss of 78 million euros. No breakdowns were provided for individual units of the company. The company says “coming months will continue to be dominated by strict cost discipline.” Though recent efforts have aimed at […]
Earnings Reports
S&S Reports: Down 20% Is the New Flat?
Simon & Schuster reported sales of $161.7 million for their fiscal first quarter, down 20 percent from $201.6 million a year ago (when the quarter was also down 12 percent in sales and 32 percent in income.) OIBDA evaporated to a slim $100,000, compared to $17.1 million a year ago, with an operating loss of $2.1 million, compared to operating income of $14.6 million a year ago. The company said “these decreases were driven by the revenue decline partially offset by lower expenses resulting from cost-saving initiatives.” CEO Carolyn Reidy says that the quarter started poorly and then improved. “In […]
Another Steep Drop in Sales at HarperCollins; Borders Braces for Depressed Spending
Sales at HarperCollins dropped by nearly 20 percent in their fiscal third quarter through the end of March, falling by $59 million to $243 million for the period. The unit swung from adjusting operating income of $29 million a year ago to a $38 million loss this quarter, including a $30 million restructuring charge due to the layoffs earlier this year. The drop in sales is only modestly better than the 25 percent drop-off last quarter. The publisher is showing an operating loss for the three quarters of this fiscal year of $12 million (compared to profits of $132 million […]
Harlequin Remains Bright Spot for Torstar
While Torstar’s newspaper business suffers heavily from the advertising slump, sales at the company’s Torstar unit have remained strong, boosted further by the weak Canadian dollar. “Harlequin’s revenues, to date, have not been significantly affected by the global, and in particular, the US economic situation,” the company said. First quarter sales of $124.5 million (CA) were up $14.8 million from a year ago, or 13.5 percent, though $11.5 million of the increase was due to foreign exchange. EBITDA of $21.8 million was up almost 18 percent, from $18.5 million a year ago. The unit took a $1.4 million charge related […]
Comp Sales Off 4.5% at Waterstone's
Following the reported drops at WH Smith earlier this month, Waterstone’s parent HMV has reported that same-store sales declined by 4.5 percent in the last 16 weeks of their fiscal year, ending, April 25 (and 3.5 percent overall in that period.) For the full year, both comp sales and overall sales fell 3.8 percent at the bookseller. The company did not report actual sales today, but Waterstone’s has sales of 564 million pounds last year, so presumably this year’s sales are approximately 542.6 million pounds. The Bookseller says that layoffs have been discussed at the store level in recent weeks, […]
Amazon Continues Growth, But Media Sales Lag
Overall sales for the first quarter at Amazon.com increased by 18 percent to $4.89 billion, as operating income increased 23 percent to $244 million in the first quarter, and net income rose 24 percent to $177 million. But the growth was driven heavily by electronics, as the media segment–which includes books and digital downloads among other items–continues to lag the company’s overall performance. North American media sales of $1.305 billion were up 8 percent compared to a year (similar to the rise in the previous quarter), while international media sales of $1.418 billion were up just six percent, held back […]