20 November 2024
Springer Nature has reported solid growth for the first nine months of 2024, reaffirming its full-year financial guidance. The company recorded revenue of €1.37 billion, reflecting a 6% underlying increase compared to the same period in 2023. Adjusted operating profit rose by 9% on an underlying basis, reaching €379 million.
The Research division emerged as the primary driver of growth, delivering a 7% year-on-year increase in revenue. The robust performance was attributed to the success of Springer Nature’s journals portfolio, particularly full Open Access (OA) and Nature titles.
Notably, the publisher surpassed a significant milestone this year by publishing over one million articles aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). In addition, the company launched three new Nature-branded journals, further enhancing its reputation in scientific publishing.
Springer Nature is on track to achieve a landmark goal of publishing half of its primary research articles as OA in 2024. With 58 Transformative Agreements (TAs) covering over 3,700 institutions globally, the company has solidified its leadership in advancing open science.
Springer Nature’s ongoing investment in AI-based solutions aims to make the research publishing process faster, more equitable, and highly reliable. Recent innovations include a reviewer assistant tool and Geppetto, a program designed to detect fake text. In the health sector, the company launched AskAdis, a conversational AI interface tailored for the pharmaceutical market.
To bolster its technology strategy, Springer Nature appointed Saskia Steinacker as its first Chief Digital Officer. Additionally, Maria Castresana joined the leadership team as Chief People Officer, reflecting the company’s commitment to attracting top talent.
Springer Nature demonstrated strong financial discipline, with Free Cash Flow rising to €72 million from €55 million year-on-year. Financial leverage improved to 2.8x net debt/EBITDA by the end of September 2024, compared to 2.9x at the close of 2023. Proceeds from its recent IPO were used to repay €200 million in debt, further reducing leverage to 2.5x net debt/EBITDA.
Reaffirming its confidence, Springer Nature maintained its full-year guidance for 2024. The company expects revenue to range between €1.82 billion and €1.85 billion, with adjusted operating profit forecasted between €505 million and €520 million.