Experian beats forecasts and finally gets rid of PriceGrabber
CREDIT information firm Experian narrowly beat profit forecasts yesterday as it finally found a buyer for PriceGrabber, its price comparison website.
The firm, best known for its consumer credit checks, said pre-tax profit rose five per cent to $689m (£426m). Revenues jumped 15.5 per cent to $4.5bn – around 10 per cent of which was from organic growth.
The group also announced that it had sold PriceGrabber for $175m to Ybrant, a marketing group based in Hyderabad, India.
On top of the purchase price, Experian will also benefit from tax relief worth $120m over the next two years.
Experian snapped up PriceGrabber for around $485m in 2005, when it was part of the GUS group that once owned Argos and a majority stake in Burberry.
Experian considered selling PriceGrabber as early as February 2008, but failed to attract high enough bids as the financial crisis began to bite.
The firm also announced a 14 per cent dividend hike.
Shares in Experian closed down 4.3 per cent at 910p yesterday.