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Scholastic Slashes Earnings Estimate
Scholastic significantly cut its earnings estimate for the fiscal year ending next May. While the projection for revenue has been cut to $1.8 billion to $1.9 billion from early projections of $1.9 billion to $2.0 billion, the earnings per share estimate was slashed to a range of $1.40 to $1.60 per diluted share from $2.20 to $2.40 per diluted share.
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Reader's Digest Has Weak Third Quarter
Reader’s Digest had another disappointing quarter with sales down 26% in the third period ended September 30, to $230.1 million, while posting an operating loss of $100.1 million, a figure that includes an impairment charge of $85 million.
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Courier Corp. Had Modest 2012 Gains
A slight increase in sales in its manufacturing segment offset a decline in its publishing group resulting in total revenue for the fiscal year ended September 29 inching up to $261.3 million from $259.4 million in fiscal 2011 at Courier Corp. Net income jumped to $9.2 million from $134,000. Earnings in both years were impacted by one-time charges.
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Third Quarter Sales Up at Lagardere
Sales at Lagardere Publishing rose 4% in the third quarter ended September 30, to 626 million euros due in part to favorable currency fluctuations and a strong performance in the literature category led by the release of J.K. Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy.
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AAP Monthly StatShot, July 2012
Trade paperbacks and e-books, benefiting from the success of the Fifty Shades trilogy, were the big winners in July, according to AAP’s Monthly StatShot.
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Third Quarter Sales Down 5% at Simon & Schuster But Earnings Rise
Sales for the third quarter ended September 30 fell 5% at Simon & Schuster, to $210 million, but operating income before depreciation and amortization rose to $39 million from $38 million in the 2011 comparable quarter, parent company CBS reported.
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Thomas Nelson Boosts HarperCollins
HarperCollins said it had a “solid” first quarter boosted by the July purchase of Thomas Nelson which led to a “significant increase” in revenue. Worldwide e-book sales (excluding Nelson) for the first quarter represented 16% of total sales.
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Market Watch: Industry Stocks: October 2012 Performances
The Publishers Weekly Stock Index was evenly divided in October with the stock prices of seven companies rising, while prices fell at an equal number
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Third Quarter Sales, Earnings Slip at Harlequin
Harlequin parent company Torstar reported last week that the sales at the publisher fell 6.8%, to C$107.8 million, while operating earnings declined to C$18.8 million from C$23.8 million in the third quarter ended September 30.
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As Results Drop, Decision Coming on McGraw-Hill Education Spin-off
Sales and profits fell in the third quarter ended September 30 at McGraw-Hill Education, and parent company McGraw-Hill Cos. said it expects to have a decision soon on whether to sell or spin off its publishing division. Total revenue fell 11%, to $836 million, while adjusted operating profit declined 15%, to $268 million.
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Adult Trade Up in July
Fueled by the Fifty Shades trilogy, sales of adult trade books rose 18.2 percent in July, according to AAP's just released StatShot figures. In the month, e-book sales increased 47.4 percent while trade paperback sales rose 49.7 percent, the two formats that have benefited the most from Shades.
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Random House, Penguin May Merge
Responding to persistent media reports, mostly from European outlets, that Pearson and Bertelsmann are discussing a possible merger of Penguin and Random House, Pearson issued the following statement Thursday confirming talks. “Pearson confirms that it is discussing with Bertelsmann a possible combination of Penguin and Random House. The two companies have not reached agreement and there is no certainty that the discussions will lead to a transaction. A further announcement will be made if and when appropriate.”
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Bloomsbury Has Mixed Six Months
Sales at Bloomsbury Publishing rose 2.5% in the six month period ended August 31, to £43.5 million, but pretax profits fell to £0.9 million from £1.5 million.
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A Solid Six Months for Trade Sales
Sales of adult and children’s trade titles rose 13.8% in the first six months of 2012, according to statistics released last week by the Association of American Publishers as part of its StatShot program.
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Perseus Beat Expectations in Fiscal 2012, Steinberger Says
For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012, the Perseus Books Group exceeded its financial goals while continuing to invest in the future, CEO David Steinberger wrote to the publisher’s 675 employees in a letter summarizing highlights of the year.
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Educational Development Corp. Posts Modest Gains
Sales for the second quarter ended August 31 inched up at Educational Development Corp. from $5.4 million to $5.5 million, while net income rose to $138,200 from $126,200 in the comparable period in 2011.
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Trade Sales Rose 13% in January-June Period, AAP Says
Trade sales for the first six months of 2012 rose 13.1%, to $2.33 billion, according to figures released this morning by the Association of American Publishers as part of its StatShot program. Total industry sales were up 4.4% in the period, to $5.79 billion.
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E-books Grab 16% Share of Canadian Book Purchases
E-books accounted for about 16% of Canadian book purchases in the first half of 2012, a new survey commissioned by BookNet Canada found.
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Spotlight on Book-Buying Behavior September 2012
In the fourth quarter of 2011, e-books were 29% of fiction unit sales, compared to 12% in the final quarter of 2010, according to Bowker’s new study, “2012 U.S. Book Consumer Demographics & Buying Behaviors Annual Review.” The 17-point increase was easily the largest jump among all major book categories in the quarter.
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First Quarter Sales Fall at Scholastic
Sales and earnings fell in the first quarter ended August 31 at Scholastic, but the publisher said it still expected to meet its financial projections for the full fiscal year. In the quarter, sales declined 7.7%, to $293.6 million, and its net loss increased to $32.1 million from $27.1 million in the comparable period in fiscal 2012.