News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS), Rupert Murdoch’s media group, returned to profit in the year to the end of June.
The owner of the Wall Street Journal and The Sun saw revenues rise 4% to US$9.4bn from US$9.0bn the year before.
Net income (post-tax profit) was positive at US$389mln compared to a loss the year before of US$1.6bn when the company took write-downs of US$1.7bn.
“Fiscal year 2021 was the most profitable year since we created the new News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS) in 2013, with revenues rising 4% in the full year and surging by 30% in the fourth quarter,” said Robert Thomson, the chief executive of News Corp.
“Our strong record of cash generation, with a positive balance of US$2.2bn at the end of June, has given us enhanced flexibility. We were opportunistically able to take advantage of the required sale of OPIS, which we believe will be transformative for the already successful Dow Jones Professional Information Business. Our robust cash position has prompted the company to actively review our capital allocation policy, with a greater focus on buybacks,” he added.