Opus back in profit, PMP paying millions in dividends, a massive revenue increase at Wellcom, and Amcor’s profits nudging $1bn make this annual reporting season the best for print in years.
The past half-decade has not been kind to publically-listed print firms as slow adaptation to technological change has seen profit dry up and share prices plunge.
However this week’s results show that the turnaround strategies of the big printers are bearing fruit, providing evidence to the rest of the industry that there is money in print if you get your focus right.
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Two of the best examples are PMP and Opus, which were in big trouble only a few years ago having been caught on the hop by the changing print landscape and not nimble enough to reposition themselves in time.
The past two days mark the moments long-running restructuring projects, aimed at transforming legacy businesses into lean, profitable enterprises position for the future, finally bear fruit.
PMP has more than doubled profit and paid long-suffering investors $6m in dividends, and will be debt-free next year after having been $650m in the red during its darkest days.
Chief executive Peter George saying the business is now right sized after years of painful cuts, shedding unprofitable businesses and creating a compelling bundled offering, and revenue growth is on the horizon.
Opus had to sell itself to Hong Kong firm 1010 Printing last year to get out of crippling debt, but the gambit has paid off as it flipped a $11.8m 2014 half-year loss into a $4.67m profit yesterday.
The turnaround is even more impressive following the $42m 2013-14 full year loss, and the company now finally has the cash to do serious equipment upgrades, with $3.9m earmarked for the next six months.
While these companies completed turnarounds, print manager Wellcom has gone from strength to strength with a 14 per cent profit jump and 28 per cent revenue increase.
Described by some as ‘the only Australian business in this industry that has nailed the cross media content-led model’, such results have become routine and are only expected to continue as the recent North American expansion gathers steam.
Packaging giant Amcor is on a similar upward trajectory, profits rose by 7.5 per cent to nudge the $1bn marker on sales up 2.2 per cent.
Outdoor media growth also pressed on with the big agencies sending increasing dollars to printers around the country, even with most of their focus devoted to digital.
Only APN News & Media suffered with a big profit fall, but that was mostly the fault of its Hong Kong business and continued struggles in the newspaper industry.
The only players really letting the side down are print manager Computershare which lost huge share value after lower profits and sales, and of course Paperlinx with its $300m European disaster.
Looking ahead, however, as Paperlinx retreats to the Asia Pacific where Spicers is profitable and adapting well to change, even that much-maligned merchant may have better news next time around.
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