The DOJ plans to approve the merger of Cengage and McGraw-Hill, if the companies agree to divest some overlapping assets, unnamed sources told the NY York Post. “There’s going to be a deal. The parties are doing the work so they understand the package that needs to be offered,” the source said. “Any areas of overlap,” such as business textbooks, “will have to be sold to get Justice’s stamp of approval, sources added.” A representative for the companies declined to comment on the story. According to the companies’ financials, before any divestitures the combined entity would have $3.16 billion in […]
Education
Australian Antitrust Commission Has Some Concerns About Cengage McGraw-Hill Merger
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) released a 17-page statement of issues regarding the planned merger of Cengage and McGraw-Hill, the result of a review begun in September. The report outlines two primary “preliminary concerns”: First, that the merger will result in “higher prices, reduced quality or a more limited product range for students in Australia”; and second, that it will “further reduce the already limited number of major publishers with whom higher education authors can publish their works.” Interested parties have until January 20 to submit comments and information, with a final decision due from the commission March […]
College Store Trade Group Tells Cengage It Opposes the McGraw-Hill Merger, But Hasn’t Yet Told the DOJ
The College Store Trade Group has expressed opposition to the Cengage/McGraw-Hill merger, according to a letter obtained by the Capitol Forum. Previously, the Trade Group, which represents more than 3,000 college bookstores, had told the DOJ it was neutral on the merger. That position apparently changed when Cengage informed bookstores that it was revising its pricing structure for certain digital-access products. Formerly, bookstores received a 20 percent discount on some products, allowing the bookstores to make a profit while still matching these products’ pricing on the Cengage site. But as of December 14, Cengage no longer will offer stores the […]
Q3 Sales and Income Down at McGraw-Hill, Despite Digital Growth
McGraw-Hill reported earnings for the period ending September 30, with sales of $542.6 million, down from $552.1 million. Net income also fell slightly, down $2.2 million to $53.4 million. Meanwhile, the company’s preferred, non-GAAP measure of profit, adjusted EBITDA, was up slightly, to $371.7 million from $368.2 million. Higher ed sales of $189 million were down $12 million, while K-12 sales of $252 million rose by $11 million compared to a year ago. Despite lackluster overall results, the company reported strong sales growth for its “Inclusive Access” program and other digital offerings (entirely offset, nonetheless, by contraction in print sales […]
New Investor Eyes Barnes & Noble Education
Between late August and mid-October, James Barnes at BBA Holding Corp. built a position in Barnes & Noble Education, now at 5.07 percent of shares and thus requiring reporting to the SEC in a form 13D. Barnes controls approximately 2.4 million shares of the underperforming campus bookseller — and he also sold short puts on another 1.9 million shares expiring in 2020 at prices of between $2.50 a share and $5.00 a share (betting that the stock will stay above the put prices). After bottoming out at under $3 a share in early October, the stock now trades at $4.25 […]
People, Etc.
Author Christopher Beha was promoted to editor of Harper’s Magazine. He succeeds James Marcus, who was fired in April 2018 for opposing a controversial cover story by Katie Roiphe about the “Sh—y Media Men” list. Selected by publisher Rick MacArthur, Beha said, “Rick and I tried to be very clear about what our expectations for each other are, so there aren’t a lot of surprises.” At Simon Pulse, Sarah McCabe was promoted to editor and Nicole Ellul to senior editor. In the UK, Jennie Rothwell has joined Arrow as fiction editor. She was previously with Bonnier Books UK. At Springer Nature, […]