London, March 9, 2026, 22:37 GMT
Legal & General Group Plc slipped 1.8% Monday, trading around 249.9 pence. Investors, eyeing the insurer’s full-year numbers due March 11, aren’t zeroed in on earnings this time—the real attention is on capital returns and the speed of payout.
L&G finished offloading its U.S. insurance business to Meiji Yasuda on Feb. 2, saying the deal unlocked £1.2 billion in Solvency II capital and pointing to an extra £1 billion earmarked for shareholders—boosting its planned 2026 buyback up to £1.2 billion. Chief Executive António Simões called the move one that “supports enhanced returns for shareholders.” Legal General Group
The latest consensus, refreshed by the company on March 5, puts 2025 core operating profit at £1.649 billion. Core operating earnings per share are forecast at 21.17 pence, with an expected dividend of 21.79 pence. Solvency II coverage ratio? 219%. That’s the industry’s key capital metric—just as crucial as profit this year.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, pointed out that investors are zeroed in on how quickly excess capital gets returned, eyeing a potential £1.2 billion payout alongside the results. Early efforts to simplify the group “could help underpin confidence,” he added. Sharecast
On March 5, Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, called L&G’s balance sheet “in great shape.” That, he said, sets the company up for buybacks to jump from about £500 million in 2025 toward nearly £1.2 billion in 2026, thanks to the U.S. disposal. Pension risk transfers—where insurers take on final-salary liabilities—remained central to the story, he added. Hargreaves Lansdown
L&G came in with a fresh set of numbers for its 2024 full year: core operating profit at £1.616 billion, up 6% from the previous year, and core operating EPS climbing 6% to 20.23 pence. The group also flagged a £500 million buyback lined up for 2025, and said it’s planning to return over £5 billion to shareholders across three years via dividends and buybacks.
Pension dealmaking isn’t letting up. The UK’s bulk annuity market saw £45 billion in transactions so far in 2024, and consultancy LCP is calling for another £40 billion to £50 billion next year. L&G is in the thick of it, up against Aviva and Phoenix; Aviva just reported a 25% rise in annual profit and revived its £350 million buyback.
Still, there’s a catch. Hargreaves Lansdown cautioned that the headline £1.2 billion isn’t set in stone, with investor sentiment hanging on management’s ability to back up its talk on simplification. If the company opts for a reduced buyback or barely tweaks its strategy, shares could be left hanging.
L&G will release its 2025 full-year results and accompanying slides at 0700 GMT on Wednesday. The management team is scheduled to present and take questions starting at 0930 GMT.
