HarperCollins saw results rebound in the fiscal year 2024, with sales increasing 6% to $2.09 billion and EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) rising 61% to $269 million. This came after the company endured a difficult fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023, during which profits fell 45% and sales fell 10%. With revenues surging 15% and earnings rising 256%, the publisher experienced an especially successful fourth quarter—HC’s strongest since 2018.

Sales of e-books and digital audiobooks drove the year’s gains, offsetting reduced sales of print books. According to HC parent company News Corp., digital sales accounted for 23% of consumer revenues for the year, up from 22% in fiscal 2023.

One of HarperCollins CEO Brian Murray’s forecasts to PW last year—that digital audiobook sales will surpass e-book revenue—was realised in the significant fourth quarter. Murray stated in an interview regarding the fiscal 2024 results that he thinks there is still potential for growth in the audio sector because of Audible’s more aggressive marketing combined with more Spotify promos.

Murray was unconcerned about the decline in print sales because he believed that it was more the result of a change to a more effective supply chain than a decline in demand for print books. He mentioned that a drop in returns was one reason for the profit rise and that he anticipates good orders for the second half of the year because most accounts are running low on inventories.

Murray had previously referred to fiscal 2024 as a year of transformation, and the business did indeed implement a number of significant changes, such as appointing Rich Thomas to senior vice president and executive director of publishing at HarperCollins Children’s Books, closing the Inkyard Press imprint, and placing Suzanne Murphy in charge of the HarperCollins Children’s Book Group. Under president of sales Ed Spade, the publisher also revamped its sales team. Furthermore, the integrated marketing, marketing design, and rights teams at William Morrow and HCCB were merged by Spade and Stehlik.

Murray explained that the rash of changes had two basic causes. For nearly four years, he said, HC had made few organizational changes as it fought to keep pace with the different needs of the supply chain caused by Covid. But with pandemic response measures mostly in the past, it became necessary for HC to adjust to a new marketplace and to develop an organization that could “meet customers where they buy books now,” he said.

HarperCollins (HC) reported a strong sales growth in fiscal 2024, with the US accounting for two-thirds of sales. The company’s foreign language publishing program added $100 million in revenue. Sluggish sales of children’s books were attributed to book bans, making booksellers and librarians cautious in choosing books. However, HarperCollins is focusing on developing relationships with social media influencers to reach young people who are still interested in reading and buying print books.

HarperCollins’ fiscal 2024 results do not include the success of Hillbilly Elegy, which sold 877,000 copies in July. The publisher has started adding more fiction to its list. News Corp executives have called HarperCollins a core asset and expect more profit improvement in fiscal 2025. CFO Susan Panuccio expects more profit improvement in fiscal 2025, with HC looking for potential acquisitions.