Carlton Sees Improving Ad Trading As Loss Hits £156m
Carlton Communications has reported continuing pre-tax profits up by 76% to £53.3 million, although losses after tax and including discontinued operations stood at £156 million, down 60% year on year. The majority of losses came from the closure of the ITV Digital business, jointly owned with Granada.
Despite the gentle improvement, chairman Michael Green said that “like other broadcasters and advertiser-supported businesses, we expect the market place to be challenging in the months ahead.” Gerry Murphy, chief executive of the group, says that he is cautiously optimistic about the television advertising outlook, although visibility remains weak.
Total continuing operating profit at the group was flat at £65.3 million. Loss on discontinued operations before tax was £188.5 million, as expected (see ITV Giants Set To Unveil £300m Exceptional Losses).
Carlton is all set for a merger with ITV rival, Granada, as announced by the two groups in October (see Carlton/Granada Move Closer To £2.6bn Single ITV Company). “A single company with a single management team and a single focus will benefit viewers, advertisers and shareholders. By unifying ITV we can eliminate duplicated costs and concentrate all our energies on maximising the performance [of ITV],” says Green.
Shares in Carlton Communications were up by 12.5p at 146.5p by lunch-time today.
