Thomson Reuters reveals long-term targets

"The severity and duration of the 'Great Recession' of 2009 has meant that it will take us a little longer to reach these goals, but they appear no less achievable to us," the company said in its latest annual report.

A joint message to shareholders from chairman David Thomson and chief executive Tom Glocer said that despite the most challenging economic conditions they had seen in their business careers the company delivered resilient operating and financial performance in 2009. "We would characterise our results as being excellent on a relative basis and acceptable, but far short of what we believe Thomson Reuters has the potential to achieve, on an absolute basis."

They said they were very proud that while they had worked hard to reduce costs and realise savings through the integration of the acquired Reuters businesses, they  had been able to continue and, in fact, increase investment in strategic new product platforms and in the international expansion of the business. “We are well ahead of plan in the integration of Reuters, and by year-end 2009 we had achieved combined run-rate savings of $1.1 billion from our integration and legacy savings programs. We now expect to achieve some 2.5 times greater savings from the Reuters integration ($1.2 billion) than originally forecast."

The Reuters integration had also continued to outpace expectations in terms of bringing new content, technology and services to customers, combining the best elements of the cultures of the legacy organisations, and providing new opportunities for Thomson Reuters’ 55,000 employees.

This year, Thomson Reuters could continue and accelerate the process of taking its businesses global - especially to tap higher growth rates in rapidly developing economies, and add other market sectors where professionals need its special combination of must-have content and technology to do their jobs.

"In 2010, we are following both of these paths to restart growth in our businesses that have been hardest hit by the global recession and accelerate growth in our units that have continued to grow right through the crisis…

"Over the longer term, we believe that our business can achieve mid-to-high single digit revenue growth rates, operating profit margins in the mid-20% range, and free cash flow in excess of $3 billion. The severity and duration of the 'Great Recession' of 2009 has meant that it will take us a little longer to reach these goals, but they appear no less achievable to us."

The report is in a new multimedia format - an online mix of video, text, pictures and animated graphics. "Going digital has made us a much greener company," Glocer said in a video message. "No trees were chopped down in the making of this annual report, unless fossil fuel was consumed in delivering it to you."

Thomson Reuters shareholders annual general meeting is to be held in Toronto on 14 May. ■