LONDON, March 19, 2026, 19:29 GMT
Legal & General Group Plc ended Thursday’s session at 241.3 pence in London, down 3.3%. The insurer slid more sharply than the FTSE 100, which lost 2.35%, weighed down by the day’s sweeping market selloff.
That latest drop stings, especially since even a record-setting buyback hasn’t eased doubts about Chief Executive Antonio Simoes’ ability to pull off a turnaround. Legal & General last week laid out plans for 2.4 billion pounds in shareholder returns over the next year. Its Solvency II ratio, a key regulatory gauge of insurer capital, came in at 210%.
Thursday threw up fresh obstacles. The Bank of England kept rates unchanged at 3.75%, but flagged its readiness to step in if Middle East tensions feed inflation. Traders wasted little time, pricing in two 25-basis-point hikes before year-end, and the FTSE 100 notched a two-month low. Rob Wood, Pantheon Macroeconomics’ chief UK economist, noted energy futures were brushing up against levels “a hike is warranted”. Reuters
Two new filings dropped in the last day. Legal & General put out its 2025 annual report on Wednesday. In a different disclosure, Chief Risk Officer Chris Knight unloaded 100,000 shares at 251.41 pence apiece on March 17, then sold another 150,983 shares for around 251.9 pence each the following day, after exercising options.
March 11 numbers landed strong: core operating profit up 6% to 1.623 billion pounds, core EPS up 9%, and the board launched the first 600 million pounds of its planned 1.2 billion pound buyback a day later, on March 12. Legal & General boss Simoes called it “meaningful progress” on the group’s overhaul, according to the results pack. Legal & General Group
Capital coverage rattled investors. Legal & General’s Solvency II ratio dropped to 210% at the end of 2024, well under the 232% previously—and missing the 221% consensus from Visible Alpha. RBC Capital Markets analysts didn’t mince words, calling it a “significant” miss and flagging the weight from capital strain and M&A. AJ Bell
Opinions diverged on the numbers. Matt Britzman over at Hargreaves Lansdown, senior equity analyst, called the market’s response “a little harsh” and stayed upbeat on management’s efforts to streamline. Hargreaves Lansdown
Pressure hit across the sector, but it’s Legal & General that still draws the most scrutiny. Aviva slid 4.4% on Thursday. Meanwhile, Reuters noted last week that since Simoes stepped in at Legal & General early 2024, the stock has barely budged—lagging Aviva’s 44% jump and the FTSE 100’s 34% gain.
Macro nerves are surfacing too. Luke Bartholomew, deputy chief economist at Aberdeen, saw Thursday’s UK labour data as the kind of thing that should be reassuring for the Bank of England—except, he says, it “feels stale” now, with the Iran conflict pushing up energy prices. Legal & General is left navigating a market preoccupied with balancing shareholder payouts against renewed inflation and rate jitters. Reuters
The danger here? That the macro hit outlasts whatever support the buyback offers. Legal & General had snapped up close to 3 million shares by March 13, moving quickly on the plan. But stubbornly high oil and gas prices, plus gilt yields pushing higher, could keep the pressure on the insurer’s thinner capital buffer. If rate jitters cool and the repurchases pick up speed, Thursday’s selloff might start to look excessive.
