FT publisher Pearson reports £720m in profit
FINANCIAL Times owner Pearson announced yesterday that it expected to report 2014 results in line with its previous guidance, anticipating an adjusted operating profit of £720m.
Pearson said it had faced tough market conditions last year as its North America and UK education businesses were hit by cyclical and policy-related pressures, and smaller school textbook adoption in South Africa hit its growth business.
In its fourth quarter, the world’s largest education business saw market conditions “consistent” with the rest of the year, seeing a solid performance from Penguin Random House, good growth in its online services and improving profitability in the Financial Times Group.
“Despite continuing challenging market conditions, overall we had a good competitive performance in 2014 and expect to report results in line with the guidance we gave at the start of the year,” said chief executive John Fallon in a statement.
“We enter 2015 a simpler, leaner, more cash-generative business, well set for long-term growth and success, helping more people around the world make progress in their lives through learning.”