On Thursday, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt reported third quarter earnings for the period ending September 30, with sales of $417 million, up 25.9 percent from 2020. The company reported income of $95 million, up from a loss of ($12) million last year. They claim these are “strong” results, and the company increased their full year billings guidance for the second time, to $1.075–1.095 billion, up from $980 million–$1.02 billion. But the bar was mighty low. Two years ago sales for the same quarter were $566 million (with $48 million from the now-sold trade division). “Underpinning these growth opportunities is a large […]
Earnings Reports
Another Record Third Quarter for Simon & Schuster
ViacomCBS reported third quarter results on Thursday morning, with publisher Simon & Schuster well exceeding last year’s third quarter, which had set a new record for revenues. This year, third quarter sales hit $321 million, up 15 percent from $279 million in 2020 (which compared to $217 million in 2019, and $240 million in 2018). Operating income grew even more, to $93 million, compared to $56 million in 2020. (“Earnings” from discontinued operations, with is “primarily” S&S, were $94 million, versus $61 million a year ago.) CEO Jonathan Karp said, “It was a stellar quarter in an outstanding year,” with […]
HBG USA Sales Down in Q3 Due to “Unfavorable Comparison”
Lagardere reported third quarter results for the period ending September 30 on Thursday morning, with publishing division sales of €696 million, down 1.2 percent from last year. Company-wide revenues increased 23.1 percent to €1.46 billion in the quarter, with the travel division rebounding on the easing of travel restrictions. The $240 million acquisition of Workman Publishing was completed on September 23, right before the close of the quarter. “In the context of strong market consolidation, this acquisition is set to enable Hachette Livre to significantly boost Hachette Book Group’s US footprint, strengthen its positions in Youth Works and thereby create […]
More Record Profits: Bloomsbury Up for First Half of 2021
Bloomsbury announced its “highest ever first half sales and profits” for the six-month period ending August 31. Overall sales were £101 million, up from £78 million in the first half of 2020, or 29 percent. Pre-tax earnings were £11.1 million, up from £3 million. They had one-time charges of £1.8 million, due to legal and restructuring costs of the acquisitions of House of Zeus and Red Globe Press. “These results demonstrate the strength and resilience of our strategy of publishing for both the consumer and academic markets, and our growth of digital revenues,” chief executive Nigel Newton said in a […]
Higher Ed Sales Still Sliding At Pearson
Pearson issued a brief trading update, telling us less than usual since they report on the last nine months but omit any details on the third quarter by itself. Sales are said to be up 10 percent on an “underlying” basis — but after six months, sales were up 17 percent on an “underlying” basis and only 7 percent on an actual, reported basis. Higher ed sales continue to decline — from a low comparison bar — falling 7 percent “as growth in international courseware, including Canada and the UK, was offset by a decline in US Higher Education Courseware.” […]
Scholastic Sales Rise on Trade and Education
Scholastic reported results for their first first quarter, ending August 31, traditionally their smallest reporting period, with sales rising measurably. They had revenues of $260 million, compared to $215 million a year ago. Trade sales rose almost 20 percent to $93 million (compared to $73.3 million a year ago), attributed to backlist and strong series sales, with their education solutions division gaining $26.5 million, at $80 million for the period. “Summer learning product offerings [were] bolstered by federal government funding for K-12 schools,” the company noted. The higher sales help to mitigate the seasonal loss: The pre-tax loss was $(33.3) […]