Pearson profit bolstered by sale of English-language unit as it eyes return to growth | City A.M.
Profits before tax at Pearson increased to £202m for the first half of this year as the educational publisher said it was on track to return to profit growth later in the year.
The figure is an improvement on the £10m loss it made last year. However, Pearson’s total adjusted profits for the first half of 2018 came in at £107m, the same as last year.
The news boosted Pearson’s shares by 3.4 per cent this morning.
In the first half of the year Pearson made savings of £40m and said it was on track to deliver incremental cost savings of £300m per year.
The company said its outlook for the rest of the year remained unchanged with an expectation to deliver underling profit growth despite “market pressures”.
Chief executive John Fallon said: “Although there is still much to do, we have had a good first half and continued to make progress against our strategic priorities. We are driving ahead in digital learning, helping more people develop the skills they need to prosper in a fast changing world.”
It said it was forecasting adjusted operating profit of between £520m and £560m and adjusted earnings per share of 49p to 53p in 2018.