REED ELSEVIER NV Financial Highlights For the years ended 31 December (in  € m, unless otherwise indicated) Note 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Reported profit before tax 80 157 221 230 376 Reported profit/(loss) attributable to shareholders (48) 27 101 144 242 Adjusted profit before tax (ii) 540 566 683 737 733 Adjusted profit attributable to shareholders (ii) 401 419 503 542 540 PER SHARE INFORMATION (in  € ) Earnings/(loss) per ordinary share (0.07) 0.04 0.13 0.18 0.31 Adjusted earnings per ordinary share (ii) 0.57 0.59 0.64 0.69 0.69 Cash dividend per ordinary share 0.27 0.28 0.30 0.30 0.30 Dividend cover (iv) 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.3 2.3 Ordinary share prices – high 15.25 16.07 15.66 16.01 12.03 – low 8.95 9.30 10.92 10.86 8.13 – closing (v) 11.86 15.66 13.28 11.65 9.85 Number of shares outstanding at year end (in millions) (vi) 709 776 783 784 784 Market capitalisation ( € m) (vii) 8,409 12,152 10,398 9,134 7,722 The information provided above is based on Reed Elsevier NV's gross equity share of the Reed Elsevier combined businesses. (i) Financial information for 1999 has been calculated on the basis of the official exchange rate of Dfl 2.20371 to one euro. Percentage changes and financial ratios have been calculated using historic Dutch guilder figures and may be affected by rounding. (ii) Adjusted profit before tax, adjusted profit attributable and adjusted earnings per share are presented as additional performance measures and stated before amortisation of goodwill and intangible assets, exceptional items and related tax effects. These are reconciled to the reported figures in note 8 to the financial statements. (iii) Per share information has been calculated using the average number of shares outstanding, taking into account that the R-shares can be converted into ten ordinary shares.  (iv) Dividend cover is the number of times the adjusted earnings, before amortisation of goodwill and intangible assets, exceptional items and related tax effects, cover the cash dividends paid and proposed for the year. (v) The closing price is the final quotation at year end on the stockmarket of Euronext Amsterdam N.V. for ordinary shares. (vi) The number of shares outstanding at year end include the R-shares, assuming that they have been converted into ten ordinary shares, and exclude Reed Elsevier NV shares held in treasury.  (vii) Market capitalisation is the number of shares outstanding at year end multiplied by the closing price. 90 REED ELSEVIER ANNUAL REPORTS & FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 2003