Struggling Bonnier Books UK announced improved sales in 2018, at £71.5 million (up 15 percent compared to 2017), and a reduced operating loss of £3.6 million. Operating EBITA was up £11m compared to 2017. “After a very weak 2017, Bonnier Books UK has made sizable progress towards its goal of sustainable profitability and looks set to be back in the black by 2019,” said Jim Zetterlund, chairman of Bonnier Books UK. But the real news is the disclosure of how much the unit lost, along with steep recapitalizations by the parent company. For 2017, the company reported a whopping operating […]
Publishers
McGraw-Hill Reports 2018 Declines
McGraw-Hill reported its 2018 Q4 and full-year earnings and annual report today, with overall 2018 revenue of $1.6 billion. This is the fifth straight year of sales decline for the company, down from $1.83 billion in 2014. For the quarter, performance was “generally in-line with expectations,” with total billings down to $302 million from $340 million (11 percent decline) and adjusted EBITDA to $(25) million from $(5) million. The year as a whole was weighed down by “substantial headwinds” in the K-12 adoption market, which significantly impacted EBITDA — as well as by investment in new Higher Ed “affordability initiatives” […]
Obama Helps PRH Results As Dohle Looks to Future Growth
Bertelsmann reported full year 2018 results on Tuesday morning in Germany, with sales at Penguin Random House of €3.424 billion. Last year’s sales were €3.359, but because of the change in revenue recognition — specifically for some ebook sales — direct comparisons of sales numbers to previous years are no longer possible and will carry asterisks. (Also, per our style, from here forward, we will refer to the PRH reporting division, which includes the separate Random House Germany, as PRH+, and will use PRH for just the Penguin Random House joint venture.) At PRH on its own, sales were €3.134 billion*, […]
Scholastic Moderates Earnings Expectations
Scholastic reported fiscal third quarter sales through February 28 after the close of the market on Thursday. Sales of $360.1 million were up $15.4 million compared to a year ago, though $9.4 million of that was due to the new ASC 606 revenue recognition guidelines. The operating loss of $21.4 million was an improvement of $2.3 million from last year, with a better net loss, too, of $12.6 million. But costs are running higher than expected, and the company said it expects full-year earnings per share, excluding one-time items, “will be at the low end of its previous guidance range […]
People, Etc.
Walter Isaacson has joined Arcadia Publishing in the part-time role of editor-at-large and senior advisor, and he will be an investor in the company as well. Isaacson will acquire, edit and promote books for Arcadia, as well assisting the company in developing new strategies and partnerships. Former president and chief executive of Book-of-the-Month Club and then editor at Viking Books Al Silverman, 92, died at home on March 10. He was the author The Time of Their Lives: The Golden Age of Great American Book Publishers, Their Editors and Authors, as well as the collaborator with football great Gale Sayers on […]
Lagardere Publishing Profit Falls
After reporting a slight revenue decline of 1.6 percent for full-year 2018 back in February, at €2.252 billion, Lagardere Publishing has now reported full results in line with the expectation that 2018 would be “a more challenging year.” Profits for the year fell more than sales, at €190 million, down 9.5 percent from recurring EBIT of €210 million in 2017. The company said that the weakness in education sales in France — which were down €49 million — “weighed on profitability, as education has a higher operating margin.” Additionally, under nonrecurring items — which as we have observed in the […]