Finance

Led by 'The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,' Suzanne Collins’ prequel to her blockbuster Hunger Games series, unit sales of print books rose 5.5% last week over the week ended May 16 at outlets that report to NPD BookScan.

After a scare in March, the first quarter of its new fiscal year, Educational Development Corporation said that it now expects to have a record first period with sales between $36.5 million and $38.5 million.

Bloomsbury Publishing reported a 10% profit increase in the fiscal year ended February 29, 2020, over fiscal 2019. The publisher said its business in the current fiscal year has suffered "significant disruption" because of the coronavirus pandemic, but said it is "well placed to benefit from increased demand for our digital resources, audio, and e-books.”

Industry sales fell 8.4% in March compared to a year ago at publishers that report to AAP's StatShot program. Sales in the trade segments has small increases in the month, but sales in all other categories declined.

With sales increasing 160% last month over April 2019 in its direct sales division, Educational Development Corp. has repaid a $1.4 million loan it received under the Payroll Protection Program.

Revenue in LSC Communications’ book group dropped 21.4% in the first quarter ended March 31, 2020, falling to $204 million. Lower demand for educational materials offset an increase in its trade business, the printer, which filed Chapter 11 in April, reported.

A small gain in digital sales offset softer print sales in HC's third quarter, leading to a 2.1% decline in sales compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2019. Earnings increased 3.1%.

Strong sales in the adult nonfiction segment helped to drive up unit sales of print books by 10.9% last week at outlets that report to NPD BookScan.

First quarter sales rose 4% at Simon & Schuster over last year's first period, led by gains in digital audio and e-books, but the outlook for rest of 2020 is uncertain.

Total sales at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt fell only 2.4% in the first quarter of 2020 compared to a year ago, but the publisher said it expects its business to be "severely impacted" by the Covid-19 pandemic in the second quarter.