Regional publisher Local World is continuing to generate healthy profits according to half-yearly results from its biggest investor.
DMGT said that its 38.7pc stake in the publisher generated profits of £7m in the six-month period 1 October to 31 March.
This suggests that Local World’s overall profits for the period stand at around £18m.
The Daily Mail publisher retained the 38.7pc shareholding after selling Northcliffe Media to the David Montgomery-led consortium, which also includes the former Iliffe News and Media titles.
Today’s results suggest the company’s profit margins have grown during 2014.
In its own annual results published in March, Trinity Mirror said its 20pc share of the company generated profits of £5.1m in 2013, suggesting an overall profit for the year of £25.5m.
However today’s DMGT results show Local World is on course comfortably to exceed that figure during 2014.
The DMGT report says: “The share of profits from Local World, in which DMGT owns a 38.7% stake, was £7m in the period compared to £3m from three months of trading in the prior year, reflecting an improved profit margin.”
Local World declined to comment further on the figures.
DMGT has also announced today that it is selling its digital recruitment platform Jobsite to the Axel Springer group, and floating its property portal Zoopla on the stock exchange.
Chief executive Kevin Beatty said the company was exiting the digital recruitment market “to increase its focus on the core Mail business.”
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Good. Future investments in the products, then..
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Good news to see the word ‘profit’ and Local World in the same sentence. However, at what cost has the company managed to achieve a profit? How many lay-offs have occurred, are working hours for all people involved with Local World fair and balanced, what’s the pension deficit situation looking like and was Prince Charles right to compare Putin to Hitler?
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I don’t understand how they are making money. None of it adds up, especially when you see how few advertisers there are.
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Smoke and mirrors.
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God knows how they’ve recorded that profit. I was sure they must have spent at least that much on red paint, making all the offices fit with the company branding.
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Mmm, lovely jubbly, but I wonder how much of this “profit” (and I share Scoop’s scepticism) is generated by LW’s much-touted online operation, and how much from its admittedly splendid newspapers. I think we should be told… anything, really.
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The new notebooks “de management” have just ordered for us have paper so thin we can’t write on both sides.
As a metaphor for LW’s stewardship it’s beautiful – short term tightening of adequate resources to do the job properly = profits in the short term and portfolio wrecking over a longer period.
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