Cannes Lions-owner Informa affirms guidance has hails 'strong growth'
Informa PLC on Tuesday backed its annual outlook, amid an acceleration in revenue growth as the first five months of the year progressed.
The London-based business information and events company said underlying revenue growth in the five months to May 31 was 9.3% on-year. In the first quarter, underlying revenue growth was 7.6%, Informa had reported last month, suggesting growth accelerated in April and May.
The update from Informa on Tuesday was published ahead of its annual general meeting, and also coincides with an investor trip to its Cannes Lions event.
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity concludes on Friday. It kicked off on Monday. Informa became the owner of Cannes Lions in 2024, after acquiring London listing Ascential.
‘The commercial power of our Live B2B Event brands and Academic Market services is driving further strong growth for Informa,’ Chief Executive Stephen Carter said.
‘The Informa growth platform is built on leading specialist brands, market categories in structural growth, international reach into growth economies, first-party data, and world-class industry talent.’
In the B2B Live Events segment, underlying revenue during the five months rose 8.3%, while in the Academic Markets arm, it surged 14%.
At Informa TechTarget, underlying revenue was roughly 5% lower, amid ‘continuing market softness’. However, Informa noted improved momentum from the first-quarter into the second.
Nasdaq-listed Informa TechTarget is 57%-owned by Informa. It was formed through the merger of Informa’s digital businesses with US-listed Tech Target.
Informa TechTarget affirmed Monday its first-quarter report is set to include a non-cash goodwill impairment to reflect a ‘current reduction in public market value’.
London-listed Informa still expects to see 2025 group underlying revenue growth of over 5%. It said £2.8 billion of revenue for the year is already ‘traded, booked or committed’, giving it strong visibility. The sum represents around 70% of its full-year target for revenue.
It expects a further weakening of the dollar to translate to reported revenue of around £4 billion. Informa’s revenue in 2024 amounted to £3.55 billion.
Informa shares were 0.2% higher at 801.00 pence each in London on Tuesday morning. The wider FTSE 100 index was 0.5% lower.
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