Pearson plc is a multinational publishing and education company headquartered in London, England.
It was founded as a construction business in the 1840s but switched to publishing in the 1920s. It is the largest education company and was once the largest book publisher in the world. In 2013 Pearson merged its Penguin Books with German conglomerate Bertelsmann.
In 2015 the company announced a change to focus solely on education. Pearson has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It has a secondary listing on the New York Stock Exchange in the form of American depositary receipts.
Type: Public limited company
Traded as: LSE: PSON; NYSE: PSO; FTSE 100 Component
Industry: Education; Mass media
Founded: 1844; 176 years ago (as S. Pearson & Son)
Founder: Samuel Pearson
Headquarters: London, England, UK
Products: Publishing (books, newspapers, magazines)
Services: Educational assessment; School management; Higher education
Website: www.pearson.com