LONDON, March 16, 2026, 19:39 GMT
Legal & General finished Monday’s session 0.65% higher at 247.9 pence. After the bell, the insurer disclosed its first purchase under the new £1.2 billion buyback—2,992,834 shares bought across March 12 and 13, set for cancellation.
This comes as investors try to figure out if cash payouts are enough to shore up a stock dented by last week’s annual numbers. L&G fell short on core operating profit. The Solvency II ratio, which tracks capital health, landed at 210%—a drop from 232%.
L&G announced on March 12 that it was launching the first part of its buyback programme, capped at £600 million. According to Monday’s update, Barclays scooped up shares in London and on other trading venues, paying between 240.8p and 249.5p. Once these shares are cancelled, L&G’s share count drops to 5.694 billion.
Uncertainty lingers. L&G’s shares have barely budged since Antonio Simoes stepped in as CEO early 2024, according to Reuters last week. Over the same stretch, Aviva has surged roughly 44%, and the FTSE 100 is up around 34%.
“In two years, we’ve reshaped the company,” Simoes told Reuters following the results. He added that L&G feels “very comfortable” with its solvency ratio, and intends to hand back £2.4 billion to investors in the coming year via dividends and buybacks. Reuters
Analysts didn’t see quite the same drama as the early drop in shares implied. Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, pointed out there were “a few moving parts” to the figures but said they were “broadly in line with expectations,” calling the selloff “a little harsh.” Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, labeled the earnings miss “unfortunate but not catastrophic.” Hargreaves Lansdown
Management is banking on retirement and asset-management growth to rebuild the pitch. L&G posted £11.8 billion in pension risk transfer volume for 2025—these are bulk annuity deals where insurers assume company pension obligations. Assets under management climbed 5% to £1.2 trillion, and the full-year dividend nudged up 2% to 21.79p.
A governance shake-up is on the way. L&G announced Ric Lewis, a non-executive director, is set to leave the board on May 18 after six years. Stepping in, Scott Wheway will pick up the chair of the nominations and corporate governance committee starting May 21.
Still, the buyback leaves key questions unanswered. Core operating profit landed at £1.62 billion—shy of the nearly £1.65 billion analysts had penciled in. Simoes flagged ongoing concerns, pointing to volatility from the Iran war and pressures in U.S. private credit.
Monday’s gains mostly tracked the stronger London session instead of signaling a shift in how investors view the company. The FTSE 100 finished up 0.6%, and financials climbed over 1%. L&G hasn’t yet demonstrated it can lift earnings without putting extra pressure on its capital buffer.
