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Hodder boosts Hachette's profit

15.03.07 Philip Jones

Hachette's book business, which includes Hodder Headline, Orion, and Time Warner, saw earnings before interest and tax rise 16.6% in 2006 to Euro220m, according to parent company Lagardere's annual report. This was despite a profit dip at Orion and Octopus.

The group has previously reported that the book division raised sales by 20%, from Euro1.6bn to Euro1.97bn, thanks to strong growth at Hodder Headline and a contribution of Euro336m from Time Warner, bought in April last year. Like-for-like sales growth was 1.8%.

The book division's profit benefited from the contribution of Time Warner over nine months, adding Euro33m to the 2006 result. Lagardere said that distribution in France and Hodder Headline played a significant role in the increase in profit, while Larousse in France and internationally, Octopus and Orion contributed less than in 2005.

Overall, operating margin was 11.1%, compared with 11.5% in 2005. The fall was due to the integration of Time Warner Book Group and the impact of the sale of Dalloz. Excluding these two factors, underlying operating margin rose by 0.2%.

Financial Philip Jones Hachette time warner hodder headline Orion

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