Image source: Thomson Reuters 2020 Fourth-Quarter & Full-Year Results presentation, Feb. 23, 2021

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Thomson Reuters Corp reported higher fourth-quarter revenue on Tuesday and said it would start a two-year program that will change it from a holding company to an operating company.

The news and information company, which owns Reuters News, said revenues rose 2% to $1.62 billion, while its operating profit jumped more than 300% to $956 million, reflecting the sale of an investment, a gain from an amendment to pension plan and lower costs.

Its three main divisions, Legal Professionals, Tax & Accounting Professionals and Corporates, all showed higher organic quarterly sales and adjusted profit.

Thomson Reuters’ markets are healthy and evolving, making this a good time to transition the company from a content provider to a “content-driven technology company,” Chief Executive Steve Hasker said in a statement.

Workplaces have been transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic and artificial intelligence has a larger role in professional markets, he said.

Image source: Thomson Reuters 2020 Fourth-Quarter & Full-Year Results presentation, Feb. 23, 2021

Writing by Nick Zieminski in New York, editing by Louise Heavens and Jane Merriman.

_____

Source: Reuters