LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s Telegraph Media Group (TMG), the newspaper publisher up for sale, reported a 2% rise in subscriptions to 734,000 in 2022 and said it was confident of reaching its target of 1 million by year-end.
The publisher of the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph said revenue for the year ended December 2022 increased 4% to 254.2 million pounds ($325.9 million), driven by digital subscriptions. Core earnings before exceptional items rose 16% to 46.8 million pounds.
Receivers Alix Partners took control of TMG and The Spectator magazine after lender Lloyds Bank placed B.UK, a holding company owned by the Barclay family, into receivership.
The Barclay family, which had failed to repay loans owed to the bank, said at the time that “discussions with Lloyds Banking Group remain ongoing,” and it hoped to come to an agreement that would satisfy all parties.
Reports have said the newspapers, which are politically influential, could be worth upwards of 500 million pounds.
The company said on Tuesday it expected profitability to increase further this year, despite a continued decline in print advertising revenues and inflationary pressure.
($1 = 0.7800 pounds)
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Christina Fincher)