Results round-up

Pearson surged on Friday as the education publisher posted a 6% increase in first-quarter underlying sales, reiterated its guidance for the full year and announced further cost-cutting measures and a strategic review of its K12 courseware publishing business.

Sales in the first three months were up 6% in underlying terms, led by growth in revenues in North American higher education courseware, professional certification, Online Program Management, US K12 courseware, South African school textbooks and UK student assessment. This was offset by expected declines in US student assessment and in Learning Studio, a higher education learning management system which is being retired, and declines in Middle East and India due to business exits.

The company maintained its guidance range for 2017 profit of £570m to £630m, adjusted earnings per share of 48.5p to 55.5p and cash conversion in excess of 90%.

It also announced a strategic review of the US K12 courseware publishing business, which it said has seen a slow pace of digital adoption in basal courseware, high capital intensity and a challenging competitive and market environment.

British Airways owner International Consolidated Airlines Group reported record first quarter profits well ahead of expectations as a drop in costs offset lower but improving passenger revenues, and said it expected a profit gain over the full year.

In what is traditionally its weakest quarter, IAG's operating profits in the first three months of the year of €170m before exceptional items were up 10% on the same period last year.

This was despite a foreign exchange impact on operating profit of €32m, due to the translation of sterling profit into euros.

At current fuel prices and exchange rates, boss Willie Walsh said he expected operating profit for 2017 to show an improvement year-on-year, with second quarter revenue per available seat kilometre to show an increase versus last year, at constant currency.

For the first quarter, passenger unit revenue declined 7.2% cent, or 3.1% at constant currency - this was a big improvement on the 12.7% in the fourth quarter.

Group passenger revenue fell 4.2% to €4.28bn and total revenue by 2.8% to €4.9bn.

Adjusted non-fuel unit costs shrank 3.9%, or were up 1.4% at constant currency, while fuel unit costs were down 13.6% or 16.1% at constant currency.

Cash stood at €7.5bn at 31 March, up by over €1bn since the year end.