ii view: Informa prospers from live events and data

First-half results to 30 June

• Underlying revenues up 7.8% to £2.04 billion
• Adjusted profit up 9.2% to £579 million
• Interim dividend up 9.4% to 7p per share
• Net debt including leases up 73% to £2.97 billion 

Guidance:

• Now expects full-year underlying revenue growth of 6%, up from a previous 5%

Chief executive Stephen Carter said:

"Informa is built around world class Brands, leading International market positions, First Party Data and, most importantly, Colleagues with specialist expertise and a passion to deliver for customers."

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ii round-up:

Informa (LSE:INF) today raised its forecast for annual sales growth as well as increasing the group’s share buyback programme as demand for the company’s live events exhibitions business proved particularly robust. 

First-half adjusted sales to late June rose 7.8% to £2.04 billion, pushing adjusted profits up 9.2% to £579 million. Analysts had forecast outcomes of £2.01 billion and £559 million respectively. Informa now expects growth in annual adjusted sales of 6%, up from a previous 5%, with an additional £150 million added to the prior £200 million 2025 share buyback programme.

Shares in the FTSE 100 company rose 5% in UK trading having come into these latest results up close to 4% so far in 2025. The FTSE 100 index is up almost 10% year to date. Fellow exhibitions provider RELX (LSE:REL) is up 7%.  

Informa looks to help businesses connect and make better informed decisions. Sales at the live business-to-business (B2B) events division rose 8.5% year-over-year, exceeding analyst estimate of 7.6%.

Adjusted sales for Informa’s academic markets or Taylor & Francis business climbed 11.9% from a year ago, aided by the signing of non-recurring licencing agreements with AI related companies.

Informa flagged total revenues of £3.1 billion which had already been traded, booked or committed for the full year through subscriptions, representing 80% of full year target revenues, and up from £2.7 billion a year ago.

A £700 million bond issue completed during the period takes the company’s average debt maturity to 4.5 years.

Broker UBS reiterated its ‘buy’ stance on the shares post the results. A 10-month trading update is likely to be announced mid-to-late November. 

ii view

Started in 1998, Informa today employs around 13,000 people. Live B2B Events, which combines its Markets, Connect and Festivals areas, generated three-quarters of total revenues during this latest half-year. That was followed by its data focused publisher Taylor & Francis at 16%, with its TechTarget business, bringing together buyers and sellers of tech businesses and which is also listed on the Nasdaq index, the balance of 9%. Geographically, North America dominates at about half of sales, with China another key market at 14%, and the UK 6%.  

For investors, adjusted TechTarget sales fell 4.3% during this latest period with TechTarget Inc (NASDAQ:TTGT) shares down more than 60% year-to-date. The group’s ratio of net debt to adjusted profits (EBITDA) currently sits at the upper end of management’s 1.5-2.5 times range. Increased geopolitical tensions for regions such as the Middle East are not to be overlooked, while a forecast future dividend of around 2.6% sits below the 5% plus estimates at media rivals WPP (LSE:WPP) and ITV (LSE:ITV).    

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More favourably, a portfolio of more than 800 specialist, category-leading B2B brands serving over 30 markets continues to fuel growth at its Live B2B events operation. AI related companies paying Informa fees for access to its academic data have included Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT). Diversity of both product and geographical region exist, while shareholder returns also include a now expanded share buyback programme. 

On balance, and while risks remain, a consensus analyst estimate of fair value above 955p per share appears to offer scope for continued longer-term optimism. 

Positives: 

• Diversity of businesses
• Over £1.8 billion of share buybacks since 2022

Negatives:

• Uncertain economic outlook
• Exposure to currency moves 

The average rating of stock market analysts:

Buy