Finance

Profits rose at five big trade publishers in an unprecedented year.

Driven by strong sales in the U.S. in 2020, revenue at Penguin Random House increased 4.6% over 2019, while profits jumped 23%. The U.S. accounted for 58% of worldwide sales, up from 56% in 2019.

Citing continuing strong demand for books in February, Bloomsbury Publishing said it expects sales for the fiscal year ended February 28, 2021, to be above current market expectations and profits to be "significantly" ahead of previous forecasts.

The decision to focus its 2020 list on books that could perform well online, in nontraditional outlets, and in digital formats led to a 6% increase in operating profits at Quarto last year, while revenue declined 7%, to $126.9 million.

Sales in Scholastic's book fairs fell 73% in the third quarter compared to a year ago, contributing to a 26% decline in overall revenue.

A good fourth quarter was not enough to offset a first half sales slump at Regnery. The publisher has set a 75,000-copy first printing for Josh Hawley's 'The Tyranny of Big Tech,' which will be published on May 4.

Sales at Barnes & Noble Education continue to be hit by the pandemic, with sales for the third quarter ended December 31, 2020, down 18.1% compared to the previous year. Retail sales declined 15.1%.

Pearson earned £531 million from the sale of its 25% stake in PRH to Bertelsmann last year. Moving forward, chief executive Andy Bird said, "We exist to help everyone achieve their potential through learning."

John Wiley's financial performance in the third quarter ended January 31, 2021, was strong enough for the company to raise sales and earnings estimates for the fiscal year ending April 30.

Revenue at Lagardère's Hachette Livre slipped 0.4% last year, to €2.37 billion, from €2.38 billion in 2019. Earnings, however, rose 11.8%, to €246 million. Sales at Hachette Book Group rose 3.9% over 2019.