Reach shares jump as guidance held on ad boost from Euros, Taylor Swift tour

(Sharecast News) - Shares in Daily Mirror publisher Reach jumped on Wednesday as the company said it was on track to meet annual guidance after the European football championship, Taylor Swift's Eras Tour and the UK General Election boosted advertising revenues.

The media group which also publishes the hard-right Daily Express said revenue for the six months to June 30 fell 5.2% to £265m. Digital revenue of £60m was flat.

Reach said it still expects full-year adjusted profit of £97.6m. Cost cuts, mainly driven by axing 14% of the workforce in the last year, helped margins.

Adjusted operating profit for the period rose 23.1% to £36.1m, while pre-tax profit surged to £33m from £6.7m. Shares in the company were up almost 5% in early gtrade.

"We are trending slightly ahead of a full year reduction in operating costs of 5-6%. The phasing of cost initiatives and inflation during 2023 and 2024 means that operating profits will be more equally weighted between the first and second half of the year," the company said.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com