Lagardere Publishing issued their abbreviated second quarter/first half of the year trading update which reports sales–with the second-quarter generating 494.7 million euros–but not profits. Sales are up less than two percent for this quarter after registering slightly above flat in the first quarter. In the US, “growth continued at a rapid pace, driven in particular by the outstanding success of the latest Stephenie Meyer saga.” The UK had “a highly satisfying quarter thanks to bestsellers and children’s books” and in France, Larousse and Hatier “recorded strong growth, but literature saw a further decline.” Overall, the company predicts that “given the […]
Earnings Reports
Scholastic Finishes Soft, Will Continue "Headcount Reduction"
Scholastic reported a soft fourth quarter, with sales from continuing operations of $536.1 million, down 2 percent, and higher operating costs and expenses that left earnings from continuing operations down substantially (by a third) at $49 million. Overall, they had a net loss for the quarter of $13.1 million. (Losses from the direct-to-home continuities business–which it is selling–and the school-based continuities business–which it closed in May–show up on the balance sheet as losses from non-continuing operations now.) Those results missed analysts’ expectations 6 cents a share on earnings and $16 million on sales. For the full year, which included the […]
Amazon's Growth Continues in Q2
Amazon reported second quarter sales of $4.06 billion, up 41 percent, and net income of $158 million, more than double what they recorded last year. Those results were ahead of the consensus analyst expectations in both sales and earnings. North American media sales of $1.148 billion were up 25 percent, once again exceeded by international media sales of $1.258 billion, which rose 38 percent, helped considerably by foreign exchange. (International media sales were up the same 25 percent increment excluding exchange rates. Media incorporates “books, movies, music, digital downloads, software and video games, including game consoles.”) The company remained true […]
Corporate Report Cards Due
It’s time for a run of earnings reports from publicly-held companies again. Scholastic leads this wave with their earnings release, set for tomorrow morning. They are followed quickly by: Pearson/Penguin Group, on July 28 (pre-market opening) CBS/Simon & Schuster, on July 31 (pre-market opening) News Corp./HarperCollins, on August 5 (after the close) More follow toward the end of the August, including: Barnes & Noble, on August 18 (after the close) Books-a-Million, on August 18 (after the close) Borders, on Aug 26 (after the close) Bertelsmann, on August 28 (report on the first 6 months) Lagardere, on August 28 (report on […]
Courier Takes Big Charge Against Creative Homeowner
In reporting third quarter fiscal 2008 results, Courier Corporation took a “non-cash impairment charge of approximately $23.9 million related to poor performance at Creative Homeowner,” reporting a net loss of $12.4 million against flat sales of $73.4 million. Creative Homeowner “was especially hard hit in the quarter, experiencing slow sales and higher-than-anticipated returns from retailers due to the continued reduction in store traffic at home improvement centers and other large retail chains. Including the allowance for returns, Creative Homeowner’s third-quarter sales were down 45% from a year earlier. The result was a pre-tax loss of $3.6 million” for the period. […]