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Relx announces £600m share buyback plan amid steady growth


Relx, the £33bn information and analytics company, announced a £600m share buyback plan on Thursday, as it reported revenue growth across all four of its key businesses in 2018.

Relx said it intended to buy back £600m of its stock in 2019, £100m of which had already been completed, following £700m of buybacks in 2019. In the year to December 31, sales at the company, formerly known as Reed Elsevier, grew 4 per cent to £7.49bn compared to last year, in line with analysts’ expectations compiled by Bloomberg of £7.5bn.

“Key business trends in the early part of 2019 are consistent with 2018, and we are confident that, by continuing to execute on our strategy, we will deliver another year of underlying revenue, profit, and earnings growth in 2019,” said chief executive Erik Engstrom.

The FTSE 100 group has over the past decade sold off the bulk of its print businesses, which included titles such as the New Scientist, to cut its reliance on falling revenues in the sector.

It has moved its focus to providing legal and scientific data and data-driven tools that detect risk, such as tax fraud. Products include advanced analytics software used by a growing number of companies and public bodies, particularly in the US.

In 2018, underlying pre-tax profits remained flat, but grew at 2 per cent to £2.15bn when adjusted for an exceptional tax charge and amortisation of acquired assets. On Thursday, Relx proposed raising its full year dividend by 7 per cent to 42.1p.

In January 2018, the company struck its biggest deal in a decade with the £580m purchase of ThreatMetrix, an online identity verification business.

“Our number one strategic priority remains unchanged: the organic development of increasingly sophisticated information-based analytics and decision tools that deliver enhanced value to our customers,” said Mr Engstrom.



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