On the basis of preliminary and unaudited figures, Bertelsmann, which owns Penguin Random House, has increased its Group revenues by about 2 percent to €16.4 billion in the 2013 fiscal year. Operating EBITDA improved from €2.2 billion in the previous year to €2.3 billion. At €1.7 billion, operating EBIT matched the previous year’s high level despite expenses and scheduled start-up losses for digitization projects and new businesses. The Group’s Return on Sales once again exceeded the 10-percent mark. Group net income is expected to exceed €800 million, putting it well above the adjusted prior-year value of €612 million.
Thanks to the high level of funds released from operations, net financial debt at the end of the year was reduced by half to €0.6 billion (December 31, 2012: €1.2 billion). Based on the preliminary figures, a dividend of 15 percent of par value (previous year: 15 percent) is expected for Bertelsmann Profit Participation Certificate 2001 (ISIN DE0005229942). The payout on Profit Participation Certificate 1992 (ISIN DE0005229900) is expected to be 6 to 8 percent of par value (previous year: 7.39 percent). The payout for both participation certificates is scheduled for May 2014.
The figures cited here are preliminary, unaudited figures. The full and audited annual financial statement will be published on March 26, 2014.
About Bertelsmann
Bertelsmann is an international media company whose core divisions encompass television (RTL Group), book publishing (Penguin Random House), magazine publishing (Gruner + Jahr), services (Arvato), and printing (Be Printers) in some 50 countries. In 2012, the company’s businesses, with their more than 100,000 employees, generated revenues of €16.1 billion. Bertelsmann stands for a combination of creativity and entrepreneurship that empowers the creation of first-rate media, communications, and service offerings to inspire people around the world and to provide innovative solutions for customers.
