LONDON, March 26, 2026, 20:11 GMT
Informa Plc shares closed down 0.4% at 764.2 pence on Thursday, as London’s broader selloff gathered pace and investors kept weighing the exhibitions group’s regional exposure. The FTSE 100 fell 1.3% after oil jumped above $105 a barrel and hopes for a quick easing in the Iran conflict ebbed. 1
That matters more for Informa than for many UK-listed media names. The company, described by Reuters this month as the world’s largest exhibitions group, said it had delayed events across more than 10 brands in the Middle East; about a quarter of its revenue comes from India, the Middle East and Africa, though roughly 40% of 2026 IMEA revenue is already secured. 2
Management has tried to steady nerves with cash and visibility. Informa lifted its 2026 share buyback commitment to 250 million pounds from an initial 200 million pounds, said more than 2 billion pounds of 2026 revenue was already paid, booked or committed, and disclosed that it had bought back 72.5 million pounds of stock so far this year at an average 834p, well above Thursday’s close. 3
Stephen Carter struck both notes in the same update. He said Informa had delivered an “outstanding performance in 2025,” but told analysts “there are some fixed costs that we’ll have to swallow” on events already in flight. 3
The numbers themselves were solid. Informa reported record 2025 revenue of 4.04 billion pounds, adjusted operating profit of 1.14 billion pounds and free cash flow of 884.8 million pounds; adjusted diluted earnings per share rose 11% to 55.6p, while statutory diluted EPS dropped to 0.8p after higher amortisation and a previously flagged non-cash impairment at Informa TechTarget. 3
Sector comparisons are messy. RELX has been hit by AI-disruption fears around data and analytics, while France’s GL Events this month forecast revenue growth above 8% for 2026. Informa sits somewhere in between: part information group, part live-events operator. 4
Thursday’s macro backdrop did not help. Reuters reported that Brent moved above $105 and a separate Reuters poll found most economists now expect the Bank of England to hold rates at 3.75% through year-end, a sharp turn from earlier market bets on cuts. Higher oil and stickier rates tend to hit corporate travel, event budgets and valuation multiples at the same time. 5
The risk is straightforward. Carter said Informa has shifted events planned for April, May and June into September, October and November, and management remains confident enough to restate 2026 guidance; if airspace disruption lasts longer or rebookings slip, the timing issue could still turn into a bigger drag on margins and cash conversion. 6
For now, management is still targeting about 6% underlying revenue growth in 2026 and leaning harder on its own stock. “We’re in the share buyback market, who wouldn’t be at these prices?” Carter told investors. At 764.2p, the market still looks less convinced than management. 3
