Bloomsbury Publishing : Annual Report and Accounts 2021

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Annual Report and Accounts 2021

Welcome to Bloomsbury's 2021 Annual Report

Overview

Who we are

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc is an entrepreneurial, independent, worldwide publisher listed on the London Stock Exchange, with offices in London, Oxford, New York, Sydney and New Delhi, and a joint venture in China.

Bloomsbury was founded in 1986 by its Chief Executive Nigel Newton and three other publishers with the aim of establishing an independent, medium-sized publisher of books of editorial excellence and originality, publishing literary authors of the highest quality and sales potential to high standards of design and production.

Following significant early successes, the Company floated on the main London Stock Exchange in 1994. In 2006, Bloomsbury entered the academic publishing market and embarked upon a strategy of expansion and diversification. This continues today and underpins the strength and resilience of our business. Since the Company's inception we have acquired 27 publishers and imprints.

Bloomsbury is the only major UK publisher to combine general and academic publishing, balancing the steady, high margins of academic publishing against the volatility of trade publishing with its explosive upside potential as demonstrated by bestsellers such as Harry Potter, the highest-selling children's series of our time.

We bring together the best talent in publishing by combining our dedicated, passionate colleagues and our bestselling authors. Through our single-minded commitment to quality, vigorous pursuit of growth, focus on digital publishing and our diversified, international strategy, Bloomsbury has grown to become one of the world's leading independent publishers in academic and general consumer publishing.

Overview

2020/2021 Highlights

Bloomsbury's Culture

Bloomsbury at a Glance

Bestsellers 2020/2021

Chairman's Statement

Strategic Report

Chief Executive's Review

Bloomsbury's Marketplace

Business Model

Strategy

Bloomsbury's Strategic Priorities

Key Performance Indicators

Divisional Overview

• The Consumer Division
• The Non-Consumer Division
• Group Functions supporting our Publishing Divisions
• Our International Offices Financial Review
  Principal Risks and Risk Management

Contents

	Engagement with Stakeholders	55	Consolidated Statement of
2	Considering our Stakeholders through	63	Financial Position	144
4	the Covid-19 Pandemic	Consolidated Statement of
Corporate Responsibility	65	Changes in Equity	145
6
		Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows	146
8	Governance
	Notes to the Financial Statements	147
12
Chairman's Introduction to Corporate		Company Statement of
	Governance	83	Financial Position	185
14	Corporate Governance Framework	85	Company Statement of
Board of Directors	86	Changes in Equity	186
22
Directors' Report	88	Company Statement of Cash Flows	187
24
Corporate Governance Report	94	Notes to the Company
25
Nomination Committee Report	101	Financial Statements	188
26
Audit Committee Report	104	Additional Information
28
Directors' Remuneration Report	108
	Five Year Financial Summary	200
30	Section 172 Directors' Duties Statement	129
Company Information	201
Financial Statements
38		Legal Notice	202
42	Independent Auditor's Report	132	Notice of the Annual General Meeting	203
Consolidated Income Statement	142
43
Consolidated Statement of
44
Comprehensive Income	143
48

Stock code: BMY

Annual Report and Accounts 2021

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2

2020/2021 Highlights

Financial highlights

Revenue
£m
£185.1m
+14%
£142.6m	£161.5m	£162.7m	£162.8m	£185.1m
17	18	19	20	21

Profit before tax

£m
£17.3m
+31%
£9.4m	£11.6m	£12.0m	£13.2m	£17.3m
17	18	19	20	21

Dividend1

pence per share

18.64p

+1356%
				18.64p
6.70p	7.51p	7.96p	1.28p
17	18	19	20	21

Adjusted diluted EPS3 4

pence per share

18.68p

+15%
12.22p	13.47p	14.48p	16.23p	18.68p
17	18	19	20	21

Profit before tax and highlighted items2

£m
£19.2m
+22%
£12.0m	£13.2m	£14.4m	£15.7m	£19.2m
17	18	19	20	21

Diluted EPS4

pence per share

16.71p

+25%
9.49p	11.67p	11.85p	13.40p	16.71p
17	18	19	20	21

• Revenues increased by 14% to £185.1 million (2019/2020: £162.8 million)
• Profit before taxation and highlighted items2 grew by 22% to £19.2 million, up from £15.7 million in 2019/2020
• Profit before taxation grew by 31% to £17.3 million (2019/2020: £13.2 million)
• Diluted earnings per share, excluding highlighted items3, grew by 15% to 18.68 pence (2019/2020: 16.23 pence)4

Notes

• Diluted earnings per share grew by 25% to 16.71 pence (2019/2020: 13.40 pence)4
• Net cash of £54.5 million at 28 February 2021, up 74% (2020: £31.3 million)
• Cash conversion of 142% (2019/2020: 111%)
• Final dividend of 7.58 pence per share (2020: bonus issue with a value equivalent to 6.89 pence per share6)
• Special dividend of 9.78 pence per share

1. For the year ended 29 February 2020, Bloomsbury had intended to declare a final dividend for the year of 6.89 pence per share. This would have resulted in a total dividend for the year of 8.17 pence per share. Bloomsbury decided in light of coronavirus to conserve cash and therefore made a bonus issue to Shareholders in lieu of, and with a value equivalent to, it's proposed final cash dividend of 6.89 pence per ordinary share. The dividend for the year ended 28 February 2021 includes a special dividend of 9.78p pence per share in recognition of the boom in trading this year.
2. Highlighted items comprise amortisation of acquired intangible assets, legal and other professional costs relating to ongoing and completed acquisitions and restructuring costs, and a grant under the US Government Paycheck Protection Program.
3. Adjusted diluted EPS is calculated from profit before tax and highlighted items with taxation on profit before tax and highlighted items deducted.
4. Restatement of all prior periods earnings per share due to bonus issue of shares in the year.
5. Publishers association: 2020 Consumer Market up 7% year on year.
6. 2019/2020: bonus issue in lieu of, and with a value equivalent to, proposed final dividend of 6.89 pence per share.

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

www.bloomsbury.com

Overview

Operational highlights

Consumer division

• Outstanding Consumer revenue growth of 22% to £118.3 million (2019/2020: £96.8 million)
• Consumer profit before taxation and highlighted items2 increased by 61% to £14.2 million (2019/2020: £8.9 million)
• Very strong Adult Trade performance, with revenue up 17% to £43.7 million (2019/2020: £37.4 million) and profit before taxation and highlighted items2 up 145% to £3.9 million (2019/2020: £1.6 million)
• Excellent Children's Trade performance, with revenue growth of 26% to £74.6 million (2019/2020: £59.4 million) and profit before taxation and highlighted items2 up 42% to £10.4 million (2019/2020: £7.3 million)
• Sales of Sarah J. Maas' titles grew by 129% and Harry Potter sales grew by 7%
• Appointment of Ian Hudson as Managing Director, Consumer Publishing, and Paul Baggaley, Editor-in-Chief, Adult Consumer Publishing; an industry leading team to drive our ambitious growth plans

Read more in our performance section on pages 14 to 21

Non-Consumer division

• Resilient Non-Consumer performance, with revenue growth of 1% to £66.8 million (2019/2020: £66.0 million)
• Non-Consumerprofit before taxation and highlighted items2 of £5.4 million (2019/2020: £6.7 million)
• Bloomsbury Digital Resources ("BDR") revenues growth of 49% to £12.4 million (2019/2020: £8.3 million) and profit of £2.9 million (2019/2020: £0.7 million)
• Digital format sales now comprise 33% of Non-Consumer revenues, a CAGR of 31% over four years
• Good Academic & Professional performance, with revenue growth of 3% to £44.3 million (2019/2020: £43.1 million) and profit before taxation and highlighted items2 of £4.3 million (2019/2020: £4.8 million)
• Acquisition of Red Globe Press assets in April 2021 for £3.7 million, accelerating our digital growth and our significant presence in humanities and social sciences academic publishing
• Voted "Academic, Educational and Professional Publisher of the Year" at the 2021 British Book Awards
• BDR partnerships with Taylor & Francis and Human Kinetics launched, and new partnerships with Yale University Press, Liverpool University Press and the Stratford Festival

Consumer revenue up by	Bloomsbury Digital Resources
22%*	revenue up by
	49%
Consumer profit up by	Digital format sales comprise
61%
33%
	of Non-Consumer revenues
* significantly outperforming the industry's 7% growth5

Winner - Academic, Educational and Professional Publisher of the Year

"This is Bloomsbury's third win in this category in nine years: testament to consistently strong growth and innovation that not even a pandemic could disrupt. In fact, the closure of universities and schools, and a sudden shift to remote learning, played to Bloomsbury's strengths in digital resources, including its deep archives of specialist research content and e-books.

It moved quickly to meet the needs of students, teachers, academics and librarians, opening up free access to a swathe of its

databases, backed by an effective Read On campaign that promoted its support for home study. There tends to be little overlap between trade and academic publishing, but in 2020 Bloomsbury showed a rare mastery of both. "To grow sales in such a tough year for all its staff, customers and partners is remarkable," said the judges. "Bloomsbury is an all-round smart and creative business with timely and topical publishing… there's a strategic element to everything it does"."

Extract from The Bookseller - www.thebookseller.com/british-book-awards/academic-publisher-of-the-year

Stock code: BMY

Annual Report and Accounts 2021

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