UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16 UNDER
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the month of May, 2005
PEARSON plc
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
N/A
(Translation of registrant's name into English)
80 Strand
London, England WC2R 0RL
44-20-7010-2000
(Address of principal executive office)
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant files or will file annual reports
under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F:
Form 20-F X Form 40-F
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant by furnishing the information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the
Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Yes No X
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This Report includes the following documents:
1. A press release from Pearson plc announcing IFRS Briefing
4 May 2005
Pearson: IFRS briefing
Pearson is today publishing its financial statements for 2003 and 2004 under
International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
For 2004, the primary changes to our reported results under IFRS are:
* Reported operating profit increases from GBP231m to GBP404m and reported eps
from 11.1p to 32.9p;
* Adjusted operating profit decreases from GBP455m to GBP421m and adjusted eps
from 30.0p to 27.3p;
* Net assets increase from GBP2,816m to GBP3,014m.
IFRS has no effect on cash generation, and a negligible effect on our reported
cash flows.
Reported sales are lower because revenues earned by our discontinued business
Recoletos (2004 sales: GBP190m) are not reported under IFRS. We have also
deconsolidated a subsidiary, Maskew Miller Longman, which we report under IFRS
as a joint venture (2004 sales: GBP33m).
For 2005, we expect the IFRS effect to be broadly similar to 2004. Our
expectation of strong growth with further underlying progress on earnings, cash
and return on invested capital is therefore unchanged.
We are holding a conference call and webcast at 14.00 BST (09.00 EST) today with
Rona Fairhead, CFO; Robin Freestone, Deputy CFO; and Michael Day, Group
Treasurer. You can join this by calling +44 (0) 1296 480 180, passcode: 607291#
or at www.pearson.com/ifrs.
Financial highlights
GBP millions 2004 2004 2003 2003
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
UK GAAP IFRS UK GAAP IFRS
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Sales 3,919 3,696 4,048 3,850
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Statutory results
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Operating profit 231 404 226 406
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Profit before tax 171 325 152 313
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Basic earnings per share 11.1p 32.9p 6.9p 31.7p
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Business performance
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Adjusted operating profit 455 421 490 443
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Adjusted profit before tax 386 345 410 353
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Adjusted earnings 239 217 254 217
--------------------------
Adjusted earnings per share 30.0p 27.3p 32.0p 27.3p
Free cash flow 288 282 192 190
Net borrowings 1,206 1,221 1,361 1,373
Return on invested capital 6.2% 6.1% 6.3% 6.0%
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Summary consolidated balance sheet
GBP millions 2004 2004 2003 2003
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
UK GAAP IFRS UK GAAP IFRS
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Goodwill and intangible assets 2,890 3,278 3,260 3,550
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Other fixed assets 538 878 553 929
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Current assets 2,558 2,064 2,523 2,257
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Non-current assets held for sale - 358 - -
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total assets 5,986 6,578 6,336 6,736
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Equity and reserves 2,816 3,014 3,088 3,161
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Current liabilities 1,275 1,080 1,704 1,593
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Non-current liabilities 1,895 2,403 1,544 1,982
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Non-current liabilities held for sale - 81 - -
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total equity and liabilities 5,986 6,578 6,336 6,736
-------------------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
For more information:
Luke Swanson / Robin Freestone / Charlotte Elston + 44 (0) 20 7010 2310
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
PEARSON plc
Date: 4 May, 2005
By: /s/ STEPHEN JONES
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Stephen Jones
Deputy Secretary