REED ELSEVIER PLC Financial highlights For the years ended 31 December 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 £m £m £m £m £m PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Reported profit before tax 57 102 146 153 275 Reported profit/(loss) attributable to shareholders (33) 17 67 96 177 Adjusted profit before tax 376 365 449 490 534 Adjusted profit attributable to shareholders 279 270 330 361 394 PER SHARE INFORMATION Earnings/(loss) per ordinary share (2.9)p 1.5p 5.3p 7.6p 14.0p Adjusted earnings per ordinary share 24.4p 23.3p 26.1p 28.5p 31.2p Net dividend per ordinary share 10.0p 10.0p 10.5p 11.2p 12.0p Dividend cover 2.4 2.1 2.5 2.5 2.6 Ordinary share prices – high 630p 700p 700p 696p 552p – low 344p 391p 493p 488p 392p Market capitalisation (£m) 5,310 8,837 7,196 6,733 5,909 (i) All amounts presented are based on the 52.9% share of Reed Elsevier combined profits attributable to the Reed Elsevier PLC shareholders (see note 9 to the financial statements). The statutory profit for Reed Elsevier PLC includes the impact of sharing the UK tax credit with Reed Elsevier NV as a reduction in reported profits. On this basis, the consolidated profit before tax, attributable profit and basic earnings per share for the year ended 31 December 2003 are £267m, £169m and  13.4p respectively. (ii) Adjusted figures are shown before amortisation of goodwill and intangible assets, exceptional items and related tax effects, and equalisation adjustments. The Reed Elsevier businesses focus on adjusted profit and cash flow as additional performance measures. These are reconciled to the reported figures in note 9 to the financial statements. (iii) Dividend cover is calculated as the number of times adjusted profit attributable to shareholders, after taking account of the sharing of the UK tax credit with Reed Elsevier NV, covers the annual dividend. (iv) Share prices quoted are the closing mid-price. Market capitalisation is the number of shares outstanding at the year end, excluding Reed Elsevier PLC shares held in treasury, multiplied by the closing mid-price at the year end date. 72 REED ELSEVIER ANNUAL REPORTS & FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 2003