Bloomsbury profit surges on lockdown reading boom
Bloomsbury has reported its highest first-half profit in 12 years after the coronavirus lockdown sparked a steep rise in online book sales.
The publishing house said pre-tax profit excluding the cost of acquisitions jumped 60 per cent to £4m in the six months to the end of August.
This was ahead of the board’s expectations and marked the highest first-half earnings since 2008.
Revenue also grew 10 per cent to £78.3m over the period, spurred on by strong growth in its consumer division.
Bloomsbury said it had benefited from significantly higher online book sales and e-book revenue as people splashed out on reading material during the Covid-19 lockdown.
The publisher said its stand-out bestsellers included Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People about Race and Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood.
Other favourites were White Rage, Humankind and Such a Fun Age.
The London-listed firm, which is best known for publishing the Harry Potter books, also reported 47 per cent growth in its digital resources business as academic institutions shifted to online products to support remote learning.
Overall, however, non-consumer revenue slipped marginally due to the impact of the pandemic.
Chief executive Nigel Newton hailed “excellent” trading in the first half of the year.
“The strength of our financial position meant that we continued to operate effectively, invest in new content, and build a strong pipeline of authors and titles,” he said.
“Bloomsbury is well positioned for the future, with sufficient working capital and significant headroom for acquisitions opportunities.”
The publishing giant’s net cash stood at £44.1m at the end of August and the firm said it would resume its interim dividend of 1.28p per share.
Bloomsbury said it had continued to trade well in the first six weeks of the second half, with upcoming releases including Quidditch Through the Ages by J.K. Rowling and Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Silver Flames.