Good Results for Harlequin; Pearson Shares Up

Reuters reports that Torstar reported a higher first-quarter profit on Wednesday, as the newspaper and book publisher enjoyed strong profit growth in its Harlequin and Metroland Media divisions. Torstar, which publishes the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest daily newspaper, said it earned C$15.7 million, or 20 Canadian cents per share, for the three months ended March 31. That was up from a profit of C$9.8 million, or 12 Canadian cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.

Operating revenue gained 5.7 percent, to C$377 million and Harlequin’s book publishing revenue was C$124.5 million, up C$6.2 million.

Meanwhile, the news that NewsCorp and Rupert Murdoch are circling around the Dow Jones Co., parent company of the Wall Street Journal, was an unexpected boon to the fortunes of educational publisher Pearson, owner of the Financial Times and Penguin. Pearson shares ended 4.6 percent higher at 901 pence, a 5-year high.

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