LONDON, March 12, 2026, 13:59 GMT
RELX traded slightly up in London on Thursday, shrugging off weakness in the wider market as it pressed on with its share buyback program. Shares changed hands at 2,602 to 2,604 pence, gaining 11 pence, or 0.42%, by 1325 GMT. The FTSE 100, by comparison, slipped 0.58%.
RELX is now in the spotlight as investors gauge how AI risk is shaping valuations across professional data and legal research. Shares were sitting at four-year lows right after last month’s annual results, according to Reuters, with worries swirling over Anthropic’s legal AI tools disrupting segments of RELX’s business. Still, the company maintained that artificial intelligence would fuel growth for “many years to come.” Reuters
The debate isn’t over. On Thursday, Reuters polled analysts and investors, many of whom pointed to companies holding unique data sets as the most insulated from AI threats. “Proprietary data is the deepest moat by far,” said James St. Aubin at Ocean Park Asset Management. And RELX lands in the thick of it, with operations stretching across risk, scientific and medical data, legal, and exhibitions. Reuters
Buyback activity at RELX hasn’t slowed. On March 11, the company picked up 500,000 shares at an average 2611.7543 pence apiece, right after snapping up another 500,000 at 2635.4771 pence the day before, according to company filings. With Wednesday’s buy, RELX holds 28.3 million shares in treasury—leaving around 1.80 billion ordinary shares still out there.
The numbers backed it up. In February, RELX posted 2025 revenue of 9.59 billion pounds, adjusted operating profit hitting 3.342 billion, and put forward a full-year dividend proposal at 67.5 pence. Management flagged more robust “underlying” growth ahead for 2026—RELX’s preferred metric strips out currency moves and M&A. RNS PDF
Legal, which houses LexisNexis, is still the focus. According to RELX, that division’s underlying revenue climbed 9% in 2025, while underlying adjusted operating profit was up 12%. Adoption of Lexis+ AI and the Protégé assistant played a part.
RELX often gets grouped with Wolters Kluwer and Thomson Reuters whenever AI makes waves in the legal and professional info space. Back in February, Reuters said Anthropic’s plugin rollout sent all three stocks lower, as traders weighed if fresher AI agents might eat into the industry’s entrenched subscription offerings.
RELX isn’t backing down. CEO Erik Engstrom described AI as a source of customer value and growth for “many years to come.” CFO Nick Luff, in comments to Reuters, pointed to the group’s advantage: ever-refreshing data and proprietary algorithms, which, he said, help users arrive at “the right judgments.” RNS PDF
The weak spot sticks out. Reuters Breakingviews pointed out that February’s selloff seemed overdone, referencing UBS analysts who estimate 88% of RELX’s revenue faces minimal threat from new AI tools. Still, it was LexisNexis that stood out as the most exposed segment—AI risks there could sting. If legal or compliance teams adopt cheaper AI agents before RELX manages to profit from its own solutions, the stock risks stalling again.
Thursday saw RELX edge up slightly, with traders steering clear of driving the stock back down to its February four-year lows. But the real debate remains: Will AI turn into a real growth lever or end up putting pressure on pricing for established data holders?
