By Kate Holton
LONDON (Reuters) - Pearson (L:PSON) said it expected to return to earnings growth in 2015, after a solid performance its North American higher education unit helped bring an end to a turbulent two years of restructuring and profit downgrades.
The education and media group said for 2015 it expected adjusted earnings per share to come in between 75 and 80 pence, up from the 66 pence it expects for last year, in what would be the first rise since 2011.
The 66 pence figure for 2014 was at the top of a range Pearson had previously given of 62 to 67 pence, and was higher than a current consensus forecast of 64 pence per share.
Pearson's stock rose three percent to 1,273 pence at 0850 GMT, making the company the biggest gainer on Britain's bluechip index (FTSE).
"A solid update, both from the perspective of the full-year 2014 number and the early full-year 2015 guide," Jefferies analysts said. "We would expect modest upgrades to follow."
Having expanded rapidly, the 171-year-old company, a world leader in education, spent 2013 and 2014 restructuring to increase its focus on the faster growth areas of digital services and emerging markets to complement its core U.S. education division.
The process, which coincided with a raft of management changes, has taken its toll, with associated costs coming in higher than expected and the firm's shares still to recover from an earnings downgrade at the beginning of 2014.
Pearson, which also owns the Financial Times, said it had faced tough market conditions throughout 2014, due to pressures on budgets in North America and Britain, its two largest markets, and weaker demand for textbooks in South Africa.
"Despite continuing challenging market conditions, overall we had a good competitive performance in 2014," Chief Executive John Fallon said in a trading statement.
"We enter 2015 a simpler, leaner, more cash generative business, well set for long-term growth and success, helping more people around the world make progress in their lives through learning."
It benefited from strong performances in its online services, its English language learning business in China and by improving the profitability of the FT Group.
Liberum analyst Ian Whittaker said while the 2015 guidance looked good, he noted that the figures were boosted by foreign exchange rates and a lower than expected tax rate.