Reed Elsevier says growth consistent with last year

23rd Apr 2014 07:01

- Q1 revenue growth similar to 2013- Full year outlook unchanged- 350m pounds of buybacks still to come in 2014- Legal remains subduedGrowth rates in the first quarter remained 'broadly consistent' with last year's at Reed Elsevier, the professional publishing group, with subdued conditions for its legal and exhibitions arms more than counterbalanced by strength elsewhere. So far, the FTSE 100 company has completed £250m of its promised £600m of share buybacks, leaving £350m more purchases still to come in 2014.In a statement, Reed noted that its financial position remained "strong with good cash generation", said the outlook for 2014 was unchanged."We remain confident that, by continuing to execute on our strategy, we will deliver another year of underlying revenue, profit, and earnings growth," it wrote.Looking across the group's five business units, the Scientific, Technical & Medical unit saw revenue drivers broadly unchanged on last year, when it grew crica 2%. Looking forward, Chief Executive Erik Engstrom and the board expect continued volume growth and strong demand for electronic products and solutions, and continued declines in print book and pharma promotion revenues, leading to another year of modest revenue growth.The fundamental growth drivers remained strong at the Risk Solutions unit, thanks to insurance and business services, although was held back somewhat by the continued US mortgage refinancing market slowdown and lingering federal spending effects hitting government sales. For the full year, while the federal government and mortgage refinancing segments remain uncertain, overall management continues to expect good underlying revenue growth across market segments.Business Information saw strong growth from major data services, with brands and business magazines remaining stable, which are both expected to continue for the full year.The Legal unit saw subdued conditions in the US and Europe, which are expected to continue, with other geographies and new products faring better. Exhibitions is expected to grow slower than in 2013 as it benefits from strong growth in US and Japan, limited growth in Europe and declines in some emerging markets.