Future on track in annual results despite 'unhelpful' backdrop

by Daniel Farey-Jones, Brand Republic 29-Nov-05, 11:00

LONDON - Magazine publisher Future has made a pre-tax loss of £8.9m on revenue of £212.3m in the year ending September 30, as the cost of absorbing the 50 titles it bought during the year weighed it down.

The cost of integrating acquisitions, including Fast Car and DVD Review, as well as restructuring and office relocation costs resulted in exceptional costs of £7.2m. This included £2.2m relating to its aborted full bid for Highbury House in April, which it followed up by buying 38 titles from Highbury. There was a further £23.5m charge for amortisation and impairment.

The acquisitions added £17.7m to Future's revenues, while organic growth added 2%, bringing total revenues up to £212.3m from £190.4m last year. Advertising revenues grew by 21% to £68.1m from £56.2m last year.

Greg Ingham, chief executive of Future, said: "Although the economic backdrop has been unhelpful, the group has significantly grown the scale of its operations during the year.

"While we continue to take a cautious view on the near-term outlook, trading in the first month of the new financial year is on track."

The company increased its final dividend by 20% to 1.3p a share.

By the company's own criteria, it made operating profits of £20.7m, down from £23.6m last year.

In common with rival Emap, the publisher found conditions in mainland Europe tough. Challenging newsstand conditions and the cost of launching a computing title reduced its profit margin in Europe, not including the UK, to 5%.

Operating profits in the US also dropped, from £5.6m to £3.8m. The UK accounted for over 80% of the company's operating profits and 55% of its turnover.

The company, which publishes titles such as Total Film and Official PlayStation2 Magazine, saw its share price climb 1.5p to 60p this morning.

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