Finance

Led by books by Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros, fiction sales were up in the first quarter this year, but nonfiction declines resulted in a 1.7% drop in total unit sales of print books.

A series of acquisitions made in 2023 helped boost sales at Penguin Random House in 2023, but higher costs led to worldwide earnings slipping by roughly $2.17 million, to about $720 million.

The 1,225 publishers that report sales to the Association of American Publishers’ StatShot program saw sales rise 0.4% in 2023 over 2022, according to preliminary data. Generally speaking, it was a good year for religious titles and a rough one for children's books, and audiobook sales continued to grow.

A solid performance by Scholastic's trade group and international division offset revenue declines in book clubs and book fairs, leaving total sales at the company basically flat in the quarter ended February 29, 2024, with the comparable period a year ago.

Barnes & Noble Education reported higher sales and lower losses in the quarter ended January 27, 2024, but those results were overshadowed by news that the company continues to struggle to find ways to shore up its financial position.

Unit sales of print books dipped 0.5% in February compared to February 2023, at outlets that report to Circana BookScan. Kristin Hannah's 'The Women' was the top seller in the month, followed by Laura Nowlin's 'If Only I Had Told Her' and Sarah J. Maas's 'A Court of Thorns and Roses.'

Wiley’s ongoing restructuring and streamlining efforts began to bear some fruit in the quarter ended January 31, 2024, prompting the company to raise its earning forecast for the fiscal year ending April 30. CEO Matthew Kissner said that the company expects continued “material performance and profit improvement in fiscal 2025 and 2026."

Revenue at Hachette’s U.S. division fell 6.8% last year and was the weakest performer in Lagardère's publishing group, where total sales increased 2.2%, to €2.81 billion, and profits slipped by €1 million, to €301 million.

As 'House of Flame and Shadow' hits number one in numerous markets around the world, publisher Bloomsbury predicts that total sales for the company will increase by 10% over last year.

Just days after it revealed that it had received an offer to take the company private, Canada's Indigo Books & Music released its financial results for the crucial holiday season—and as even CEO Heather Reisman admitted, the results were “disappointing.”