United Business Media said first half revenue at its PR Newswire operation rose more than three percent to £100.1M ($158M) while adjusted operating profit climbed nine percent to £22.3M ($35.2M).
UBM said its “resilient” U.S. distribution business, along with an increase in the average revenue per message and a boost in newer products were among factors contributing to the solid gains at PRN. UBM expects underlying growth for the unit in the range of three to five percent for the year.
Overall, revenue at UBM’s four business units (events, data services, marketing services, PRN) rose 6.5% for the period to £508.7M while adjusted operating profit was up 12.5% to £103.4M.
UBM said $40M of its U.S. distribution revenue is now contracted revenue, a significant increase from 2009, when the figure was around $5M. About 31% of PRN revenue comes from public sector clients, 30% on the agency side, and 28% private companies.