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Future is targeting further acquisitions after the lifestyle magazine group’s ecommerce strategy paid off during the pandemic, helping it avert the losses that have ravaged many other media companies.
The UK publisher behind titles such as PC Gamer and Practical Caravan has continued a dealmaking spree in recent months, snapping up Marie Claire US last week and moving into price comparison services through its purchase of GoCompare. Chief executive Zillah Byng-Thorne said on Wednesday that “there will be more acquisitions to come”, adding that the company was currently focused on integrating the businesses it has bought so far this year.
Her comments came as Future reported a more than doubling of pre-tax profit to £57m in the six months to the end of March, ahead of analyst expectations. Revenues jumped 87 per cent in the period to £273m. Of this £108m came from newly acquired businesses, while organic sales grew 21 per cent.
Byng-Thorne has transformed Future from a heavily lossmaking company since she took over in 2014. As even popular titles in the magazine sector have struggled to hold on to print sales or build an online audience the group has managed to adapt to the digital era with a strategy that is less reliant on advertising.
The publisher, which claims to reach one in three adults in the UK and US, makes roughly a third of revenues from commissions on sales made through its websites and newsletters that target hobbies such as fashion, gardening or photography.
Byng-Thorne said the company reached record revenues in part because of strong trading over Christmas and Black Friday, adding that she expected the company’s full-year results to be “materially ahead” of market expectations.
Analysts at Investec called the results “excellent,” noting that Future had shown early success in its integration of new businesses including GoCo, an addition that had initially surprised some shareholders.
“Markets were surprised by the GoCo acquisition but for us it was bang on strategy,” Byng-Thorne said, explaining how the deal that valued GoCo at £594m brought in new ecommerce relationships and an opportunity to launch digital magazines about personal finance.
Future’s share price, which has more than doubled in the past two years, was up over 10 per cent on Wednesday morning, before falling back to a gain of 6 per cent.
In February, Future’s shareholders staged a significant revolt over the company’s new bonus scheme, which could award Byng-Thorne more than £40m, with more than a third of votes cast against it.
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