Relx profit showstopper fails to engage investors

SHARES in telecoms, media and tech group Relx dropped as profits fell short of expectations despite a rebound in exhibitions following the pandemic.

The stock fell 1.9pc, or 44p, to 2267p after it reported a profit of nearly £1.8bn for 2021, up from £1.5bn in the prior year. revenues crept up to £7.2bn from £7.1bn.

The results were supported by a 44pc bounce in revenues from the firm’s exhibition arm as the relaxation of social distancing measures in multiple countries permitted large public gatherings to take place once again.

Despite the rise in profits, the figures were lower than expected in the City.

The group also hiked its full-year dividend by 6pc to 49.8p per share and unveiled plans to buy back £500m worth of shares this year. however, both of these failed to stop the slide in the stock price.

By contrast, rival blue-chip publishing and exhibition organiser Informa shot to the top of the FTSe100, gaining 7.4pc, or 42.6p, to 615.8p after striking a £1.9bn deal to sell Pharma Intelligence, its data analysis business focused on the drug and medical technology market.

The firm has agreed to sell the business to New York-based private equity firm Warburg Pincus.

The sale is part of the company’s strategy to streamline the business by selling off parts of its portfolio and using the funds to expand its remaining divisions.

Pharma Intelligence forms the largest part of Informa Intelligence, a portfolio of businesses that the group plans to sell.

Informa also unveiled a £100m share buyback using part of the proceeds from the sale.

The FTSE 100 ended the day up 0.4pc, or 28.98 points, at a post-pandemic high of 7672.4 while the FTSE 250 added 0.1pc, or 23.74 points, to reach 22207.75. Traders were digesting a surge in US inflation, which hit a 40-year high of 7.5pc in January and sparked fears of sharper interest rate rises from the Federal reserve.

Major miners provided some support to the blue-chip index, with Rio Tinto up 2.4pc, or 135p, to 5807p while copper giant Antofagasta added 4.2pc, or 54.5p, to 1344.5p. Polymetal International also jumped 3.3pc, or 36.5p, to 1128p and Anglo American added 2.3pc, or 81.5p, to 3599.5p.

AstraZeneca, meanwhile, bounced 3.4pc, or 286p, to 8650p on the back of strong results.

Mid-cap investment manager Ashmore saw profits drop by nearly a quarter – 23pc to £116m – in the six months to the end of December as its assets were hit by ‘negative sentiment’ in emerging markets. assets under management had dropped 8pc to £64.2bn amid fears over inflation, slower growth in China, Covid-19 variants and the tightening of US monetary policy. Despite this, the shares rose 0.7pc, or 1.8p, to 280.8p.

Beazley reinstated its dividend after the firm swung back into profit amid strong demand for its cyber-attack insurance.

The specialist insurance group posted a pre-tax profit for 2021 of £271m, up from a £37m loss the previous year, as the value of its written premiums climbed 30pc to £3.4bn. But the shares dropped 2.1pc, or 10.4p, to 487.1p.

Construction group MJ Gleeson gained 0.8pc, or 6p, to 720p after upgrading its profit forecasts following strong results. For the six months to the end of December, pre-tax profits were up nearly 22pc at £24.7m while revenues jumped to £173.5m from £142.6m.

rival housebuilder Redrow also upgraded its forecasts after it posted record revenues for the six months to January 2. They rose to £1.05bn from £1.04bn while pretax profits jumped to £203m from £174m as rising house prices offset cost inflation. Despite the rise, shares fell 1.3pc, or 8p, to 617.4p.