Press releases & announcements

23rd March 2004

Preliminary Results for the Year Ended 31 December 2003

EARLIER INVESTMENT PRODUCES CLEAR BENEFITS

• Turnover increased 22.2% to £83.11m (2002, £68.02m).

• Operating profit before goodwill amortisation increased 44.1% to £14.61m (2002, £10.14m)

• Pre-tax profit before goodwill amortisation increased 38.3% to £15.38m (2002, £11.12m).

• Basic earnings per share before goodwill amortisation up 42.5% to 16.45p (2002, 11.54p).

• Strong operating cash flows of £14.65m (2002, £12.01m) underpin 52.4% increase in net cash to £28.32m (2002, £18.58m).

• Final dividend increased 21.5% to 1.677p (2002, 1.380p). Full year dividend increased by 20% to 2.151p (2002, 1.793p).

• Investment in future titles at the year end up 41.5% at £16.61m (2002, £11.74m).

• Bloomsbury USA secured successes both with American originated books and titles originated by Bloomsbury in London, while Berlin Verlag launched new children's imprint in Germany.

• Three acquisitions made in 2003 expanding markets and strengthening backlist.

• Board remains confident in outcome for 2004 and future prospects, reflecting successful development of publishing portfolio.

Commenting on the results and prospects for Bloomsbury, Nigel Newton, Chairman, said:

"These strong results reflect the benefits of earlier investment. Our operations in the UK, US and Germany are working well together to build an increasingly international portfolio for the Group, with more rights retained in-house. The communication between all three operations has been a key factor in the Group's success. Sharing information and experiences on the performance of titles, and above all the vision of our editors to acquire new books that would be equally successful when published by their colleagues in other parts of the Group, has ensured that we maximise the chances of identifying the global bestselling books of the future.

The Group is currently performing to the Board's expectations, and 2004 is expected to show further progress, supported by continued strong cash generation. We will continue to invest heavily in our portfolio to ensure further growth and we look forward to the future with confidence."

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