18th Apr 2007 16:44
Reed Elsevier PLC18 April 2007 NEWS RELEASE 17 April 2007 Annual General Meetings of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV Chairman's Statement Issued on behalf of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV Jan Hommen, Chairman of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV, toldshareholders at the Reed Elsevier PLC meeting in London today: "We were pleased to report on a year in which we made important progress at ReedElsevier in 2006. We continued to expand our authoritative content deliveredthrough market leading brands; we invested behind a wide range of innovative newdigital products; we achieved further significant efficiency gains across thebusiness; and we saw a strong performance from recent acquisitions which areaccelerating our progress. The 2006 financial results were encouraging, with good revenue growth andimproved underlying margins. We also delivered strong cash generation andhigher returns on invested capital. We have sharpened our strategic focus to best capitalise on the growing digitalopportunities in our markets. We believe we can derive the best returns on ourbrand franchises and digital investments by focusing on the Science, Medical,Legal and Business markets. Accordingly, we announced in February 2007 ourintention to sell the Harcourt Education division, with the intention to returnthe net proceeds from the sale to shareholders." Looking at the trading performance in 2007, Mr Hommen commented: "Overall, trading conditions have changed little since our 2006 PreliminaryResults announcement on 15 February. The performance so far this year is inline with our expectations and market conditions are generally favourable. The performance trends in Reed Elsevier's businesses are as follows: Elsevier has started the year well. In both the Science & Technology and HealthSciences divisions journal subscription renewals are strong, online sales areprogressing well and book publishing is expanding. The Health Sciences businessis again expecting good growth from new publishing and backlist sales, althoughgiven the seasonality of the business, this will be reflected in the secondhalf. LexisNexis has made a good start to the year, with good revenue momentum seenacross the business. In US Legal Markets good demand continues for onlineinformation and our expanding portfolio of workflow solutions. In US Corporateand Public Markets, the risk management business is continuing to grow well.International growth outside the US is benefiting from the strong demand foronline services in the UK, France, Germany and other European and Asian markets. Harcourt Education has started the year with an encouraging market response toits 2007 basal textbook programmes and recent reorganisations within theAssessment business are having a positive effect on operational performance.The majority of textbook sales for both the basal and supplemental businessesare in the second half, reflecting the seasonality of the business around thestart of the academic year. The Harcourt Education sale process is proceedingsatisfactorily and we expect to complete the disposal during the course of thesecond half of 2007. Reed Business has had a positive start to the year. In the magazine andinformation publishing businesses, online revenues continue to grow well, morethan offsetting declines in print revenues. Exhibition demand is good withnotable successes in the early 2007 shows. Our financial goal is for a minimum of 10% adjusted earnings per share growth atconstant currencies and, excluding the impact of the sale of Harcourt Education,we are well on track to achieve this in 2007. The first half financial performance versus the prior year will be affected bythe net cycling out of biennial exhibitions, which largely reverses in thesecond half, and by seasonality and publishing phasing in the business whichalso favour the second half. The long term prospects for Reed Elsevier are promising. Our strategy is clearand focused on four priorities: delivering authoritative content through leadingbrands, driving online solutions, improving cost efficiency and selectiveportfolio development. The digital horizon continues to expand and ReedElsevier is well placed." The Annual General Meeting of Reed Elsevier NV, the co-parent of Reed ElsevierGroup plc, will be held in Amsterdam tomorrow and Mr Hommen, also Chairman ofReed Elsevier NV, will make the same comments to that meeting. This statement contains forward looking statements within the meaning of Section27A of the Securities Act 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the SecuritiesExchange Act 1934, as amended. These statements are subject to a number of risksand uncertainties and actual results and events could differ materially fromthose currently being anticipated as reflected in such forward lookingstatements. The terms 'expect', 'should be', 'will be', and similar expressionsidentify forward looking statements. Factors which may cause future outcomes todiffer from those foreseen in forward looking statements include, but are notlimited to: general economic conditions and business conditions in ReedElsevier's markets; exchange rate fluctuations; customers' acceptance of itsproducts and services; the actions of competitors; legislative, fiscal andregulatory developments; changes in law and legal interpretation affecting ReedElsevier's intellectual property rights and internet communications; and theimpact of technological change. For media enquiries contact:Patrick Kerr, Reed Elsevier, tel +44 (0)20 7166 5646 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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