John Wiley & Sons(WLY)2024-09-05 16:26Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Adjusted revenue increased by 6% to 17 million contribution from a content rights project [12][27] - Adjusted EBITDA rose 22% to 2.53 trillion, expected to grow at 4% to 6% annually [15] - Healthy growth patterns returned in the U.S., EMEA, and Japan, with strong demand in high-growth markets like China and India [15][16] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on executing its value creation plan, which includes driving growth in research and learning, optimizing content for AI, and modernizing systems [21][23] - The strategy includes leveraging AI growth opportunities and enhancing operational efficiencies across the organization [5][11] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed cautious optimism regarding the recovery in research and the overall demand trends, emphasizing the importance of colleague engagement and execution [34][35] - The company reaffirmed its full-year guidance, projecting revenue of 1.69 billion, with adjusted EBITDA expected to be in the range of 410 million [30][31] Other Important Information - The company completed its final divestiture, allowing it to focus on core operations and actioned the remaining 130 million cost savings program [21][22] - The company raised its dividend for the 31st consecutive year and increased share repurchases [9][12] Q&A Session Summary Question: Momentum in article submissions and potential organic growth in research revenue - Management noted that while there is a healthy pipeline of submissions, not all will convert to published articles, but they are optimistic about the long-term trajectory of submissions and published articles [38][40] Question: Further licensing agreements related to AI - Management confirmed ongoing discussions regarding additional licensing agreements and emphasized the quality of their content as attractive to AI model builders [42][43] Question: Expense management and profitability expectations - Management acknowledged some timing issues affecting expenses in Q1 but reaffirmed guidance for the rest of the year, indicating that normalization is expected [45][46]