LONDON, June 24, 2026, 15:12 BST
- Informa traded up 1.6% at 884.8 pence in the afternoon, close to its high for the session.
- Citi upgraded the shares to “buy” and boosted its price target to 990p, up from 850p. Morningstar
- The group purchased 992,560 shares last week through its minimum £250 million buyback plan set to run until 2026.
Informa traded around 885p late Wednesday, just under the session high of 886.8p. Shares were up 5.3% from the June 17 close.
The move outpaced the FTSE 100, which edged up 0.08%. Property stocks were in focus as warehouse owner Segro turned down a $16.6 billion offer from U.S.-based Prologis.
Informa’s trading call hinges on its June 18 AGM update. The company said underlying revenue climbed 6.4% in the five months to May 31, stripping out one-off data-access contracts. Business-to-business Live Events was up 7.6%. Informa stuck with its forecast for double-digit earnings growth for the full year.
Taylor & Francis, the academic publisher, posted 5.5% growth and still targets 4% underlying growth for the year. “We have momentum in both our businesses, B2B Live Events and Academic Services, and are reconfirming full year earnings guidance,” Chief Executive Stephen Carter said. The forecast is for adjusted earnings per share at constant currencies, factoring in changes for biennial event timing and one-off data contracts. Over 15 event brands have now shifted to 2026, with some new launches pushed to 2027.
Informa says it has already locked in over $600 million of first-half 2027 revenue. The company expects next year to bring a full slate of annual and biennial event brands, with some launches pushed back from 2026 now also set for next year.
Citi’s Ciaran Donnelly upgraded Informa to “buy” from “neutral” and gave the stock a new target of 990p, which is roughly 12% higher than where shares stood on Wednesday. TipRanks
Citi kept its forecasts steady. The bank is looking for sales of £4.36 billion in 2026 and £4.68 billion in 2027, with adjusted core earnings per share going from 57.6p up to 66.6p. Renewed Middle East tension or a slower live-events recovery could hurt that outlook. Citi also flagged uncertainty at Taylor & Francis and Informa TechTarget.
Informa’s latest buyback disclosure showed it bought 992,560 shares in the week starting June 15, paying between 832.8p and 881p. The company is canceling the shares.
Informa pulled ahead of RELX after five days, up 5.3% as RELX dropped 2.8%. RELX’s RX business operates exhibitions. Both stocks were higher Wednesday.
Informa is set to post its half-year numbers on July 30. That’s five weeks before its LEAP event in Riyadh and Middle East Energy in Dubai, the first big brands it moved to later this year.
