It’s rare to see adult books drive revenue growth at Bloomsbury (BMY) – the publisher normally relies on its larger children’s division (and the enduring popularity of Harry Potter) for its momentum. Chief executive Nigel Newton thinks new management and a strong array of bestselling titles were the driving force behind the 22 per cent increase in adult consumer revenues. The non-consumer division has also outpaced children’s books thanks partly to the recent acquisition of IB Tauris, which is expected to add £3.5m of revenue this year.
Not that there’s anything to worry about in the children’s division. True, the absence of new titles from author Sarah J Maas and a slowdown in the growth reported by Harry Potter left first-half revenues flat on 2017 at £31m, but it’s the second six months of the year that are important to this division. The back-to-school rush in October and pre-Christmas present-buying spree are the main periods of sales at Bloomsbury and Mr Newton reassures that the second half will see the launch of “an exciting list of titles to maintain confidence in the outlook”.
Numis said first-half figures were slightly above expectations and may yet upgrade its forecasts for the year to February 2019. For now, the broker expects pre-tax profits and EPS at £14.1m and 14.2p respectively (from £13.2m and 13.9p in 2018).
| BLOOMSBURY PUBLISHING (BMY) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 200p | MARKET VALUE: | £151m | |
| TOUCH: | 198-200p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 257p | LOW: 150p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.8% | PE RATIO: | 17 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 182p* | NET CASH: | £16.9m | |
| Half-year to 31 Aug | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2017 | 72.1 | 1.74 | 1.88 | 1.15 |
| 2018 | 75.3 | 1.56 | 1.65 | 1.21 |
| % change | +4 | -10 | -12 | +5 |
| Ex-div: | 1 Nov | |||
| Payment: | 29 Nov | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £67.6m, or 90p a share | ||||
