Harry Potter worked his magic on Scholastic’s sales numbers for the quarter it was released. Publishers Weekly is reporting that sales of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, along with the previous six titles in the series, totaled about $240 million for the fiscal quarter that ended 31 August 2007, or about 40% of the companies revenues. The total, $587 million, was up 75% over the previous year. The huge influx of muggle money resulted in an operating profit in the children’s book publishing and distribution segment of $2.7 million for the quarter, compared to an operating loss of $67.3 million last year. The company as a whole had a loss of $2.8 million compared to a $46.9 million loss in last year’s first quarter.
The gain in trade sales helped offset a 7% drop in book club revenue and a 14% decline in book fair sales. Sales in the continuity segment rose 3%, to $46.4 million.
Scholastic’s educational division sales were flat at $127 million as gains in technology sales were offset by declines in paperbacks and library publishing. International sales jumped 26%, to $99.6 million, led by export sales of Potter and good gains in Australia and Asia. Media, licensing, and advertising revenue increased 8%.
Scholastic expects total sales for the year to be $2.3-$2.5 billion.