Relx hikes dividend after robust full-year performance

Business information and analytics firm Relx reported a robust full-year performance in its results on Thursday, with revenue rising an underlying 8% to £9.16bn.

The FTSE 100 company said adjusted operating profit jumped to £3.03bn, marking a substantial underlying growth of 13%, while adjusted earnings per share were ahead an underlying 11% to reach 114.0p.

Reported operating profit stood at £2.68bn, while reported earnings per share came in at 94.1p.

The firm’s net debt-to-EBITDA ratio was maintained at 2.0x, while its adjusted cash flow conversion rate remained strong at 98%.

Relx said it successfully completed six acquisitions during the year, with total consideration of £130m, enhancing its portfolio and market presence, while it also executed an £800m share buyback programme.

Looking to 2024, Relx said it was optimistic about its prospects and anticipates sustaining the positive momentum seen in 2023.

The company said it expected another year of robust underlying growth in revenue and adjusted operating profit, along with strong growth in adjusted earnings per share on a constant currency basis.

“Relx delivered strong revenue and profit growth in 2023, driven by the ongoing shift in business mix towards higher growth information based analytics and decision tools that deliver enhanced value to our customers across market segments,” said chief executive officer Erik Engstrom.

“We have been able to develop and deploy these tools across the company for well over a decade by leveraging deep customer understanding to combine leading content and data sets with powerful technologies.

“We are confident that our ability to leverage artificial intelligence and other technologies, as they evolve, will continue to be an important driver of customer value and growth in our business for many years to come.”

Engstrom said that in recognition of the strong performance and outlook, the board was proposing an 8% increase in the full-year dividend to 58.8p.

At 0817 GMT, shares in Relx were up 1.89% at 3,399p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.