In a year in which its chief competitor, CCH,  launched a new research platform, Thomson Reuters said its own Checkpoint system had its best month of sales in the product's history. That came as Thomson Reuters reported revenue for its tax and accounting business rose by 9 percent while the unit's operating profit dropped by one percent for the year ended Dec. 31, 2009.

CEO Tom Glocer said in a Webcast this morning that December was the best month of sales in the history of Checkpoint and that 2009 was the first year the tax and accounting business topped $1 billion in revenue. The tax and accounting operation's revenue for the year just ended was up from $926 million in 2008. Operating profit dropped to $214 million in the most recently ended year, down from $216 million the prior year.

For 2009, Checkpoint revenue was up 6 percent, while print/CD revenue dropped by 10 percent. The company reported double-digit growth in software and services for its Professional and Corporate software operations.

Revenue for those businesses grew by 10 percent in the fourth quarter with Checkpoint sales up 8 percent. Good growth was also reported for the UltraTax and OneSource lines. Thomson said nearly 50 percent of the segment's operating profits came in the fourth quarter. Tax & Accounting revenue hit $311 million in the most recently ended quarter, up from $280 million in last year's corresponding period.

Operating profit rose to $101 million, up 3 percent from $98 million in the year earlier fourth quarter, although profit margins dropped by 2.5 percentage points.
Company-wide revenue reached just under $13 billion for 2009, up from $11.7 billion for 2008. Net earnings fell to $867 million for the year just ended, down from $1.3 billion.

Glocer expects that the company will report a decline in results for the first half of 2010 with the final year revenue probably to be flat with 2009. However, he was pleased with cost savings efforts in 2009 and predicts the company will be able to save more than its original targets. Steps he listed for 2010 include data consolidation and the use of virtualization technology