Following a record first half of fiscal 2025 that featured booming sales of Sarah J. Maas titles and the addition of Rowman & Littlefield, Bloomsbury Publishing saw sales decline 11%, to £159.5 million, and pre-tax profits fall 17.2%, to £18.3 million in the period ended August 31, 2025. Both figures were well ahead of results for fiscal 2024, and the publisher said that despite the decline and challenging “macroeconomic” conditions it still expects results for fiscal 2026 to beat market consensus expectations of revenue of £335.9 million and profit before taxation and highlighted items of £41.6 million.
In prepared comments, chief executive Nigel Newton said the consumer division performed according to expectations considering the stellar year it had last year led by Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses series and other romantasy titles. Sales in the group fell almost 20%, to £113.4 million, from £141.3 million a year ago.
In the academic and professional group, sales, helped by the R&L purchase, rose 20% to £46.1 million. During the most recent period, Bloomsbury reported that in had completed the integration of Rowman & Littlefield in both the U.S. and U.K. and that it is continuing to digitize all R&L titles. Also during the period, Newton noted that Bloomsbury signed its first non-exclusive AI licensing agreement, which contributed to the group’s sales gain in the first half of the year.
In the release of the financial results, Newton noted that Bloomsbury made several structural improvements during the period, including the creation of the U.S. key account sales team, which replaced a third party commission sales arrangement. Bloomsbury is also in the process of implementing a new global royalties system, which it expects to improve efficiency in that key area.
