LSEG interim results: record growth, higher guidance and £3.45 billion of buybacks

London Stock Exchange Group's first-half results combine faster organic growth, widening margins, strong cash generation and substantial shareholder returns.

The owner of financial data, index, risk and markets businesses reported organic constant currency income growth of 8.4%, with all four divisions contributing. Adjusted earnings per share rose 17.2%, while reported earnings per share increased 33.5%.

Management also raised its 2026 income and margin guidance. The important question for investors is whether LSEG can turn growing interest in artificial intelligence into durable subscription revenue without allowing investment requirements to erode its improving profitability.

The figures and management statements below come from the original company announcement.

LSEG's first-half figures

Metric	H1 2026	H1 2025	Change
Total income excluding recoveries	£4,799 million	£4,489 million	6.9% reported
Total income including recoveries	£4,985 million	£4,672 million	6.7% reported
Reported EBITDA	£2,515 million	£2,155 million	16.7%
Reported operating profit	£1,428 million	£1,061 million	34.6%
Profit before tax	£1,278 million	£991 million	29.0%
Reported earnings per share	163.8p	122.7p	33.5%
Adjusted earnings per share	244.9p	208.9p	17.2%
Interim dividend per share	55.0p	47.0p	17.0%

Total income excluding recoveries grew 8.4% organically and at constant currency. This measure strips out currency movements and adjusts for acquisitions and disposals, providing a cleaner view of underlying trading.

Adjusted EBITDA, meaning earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and impairment, rose 14.1% organically at constant currency to £2,527 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin increased from 49.5% to 52.7%.

That is a sizeable improvement, although investors should examine its composition. The constant currency margin gain was 260 basis points, with 120 basis points described as underlying and 140 basis points resulting from a change to the SwapClear revenue-sharing agreement in the second half of 2025. One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.

Broad growth, led by Markets

Growth was spread across the group rather than relying on one standout division.

Division	Organic constant currency growth
Data & Analytics	5.1%
FTSE Russell	9.1%
Risk Intelligence	9.7%
Markets	11.9%

Markets led with double-digit growth, supported by what management described as sustained investment. LSEG highlighted the first transactions on its Private Securities Market, the planned LSE 24 launch and a Digital Securities Depository collaboration with HSBC.

Data & Analytics grew at a more modest 5.1%. That remains positive, but it also shows why accelerating subscription growth is central to the investment case.

Annual Subscription Value, or ASV, grew 6.1% in June 2026. The revenue retention rate reached 92.8%, rolling 12-month gross sales were £482 million and the New Product Vitality Index stood at 25.0%. That final measure represents the proportion of revenue generated by products launched or enhanced within the past five years.

These indicators suggest LSEG is not merely leaning on established products. It is generating a meaningful portion of revenue from recent development while retaining most existing subscription income.

AI strategy moves closer to commercial delivery

Management placed artificial intelligence at the centre of its long-term growth case.

Through its LSEG Everywhere strategy, the group is working to make its proprietary data accessible through the Model Context Protocol, multi-cloud environments and customers' own AI systems. Model Context Protocol is a technical standard designed to help AI applications connect with external data and tools.

More than 200 customers are engaged with these initiatives. Within Workspace, LSEG's financial data and analytics platform, AI Search has reached 17,000 active users. The company also reported deeper Microsoft Copilot integration and said more than 20 customers had been onboarded to Open Directory.

This is strategically encouraging because financial institutions require trusted, permissioned and regulation-aware data. LSEG believes its infrastructure, proprietary datasets and regulatory expertise leave it well placed to meet that need.

However, the announcement does not disclose how much revenue AI products currently generate. Adoption figures and customer engagement demonstrate interest, but investors will eventually need evidence that usage converts into higher sales, stronger retention or improved pricing.

Cash flow supports substantial shareholder returns

Equity free cash flow reached a record £1.2 billion, while equity free cash flow per share rose 37.0% on a reported basis to 242p.

LSEG completed £2.1 billion of share buybacks during the first half. It plans a further £1.35 billion by February 2027, taking completed and planned repurchases to £3.45 billion.

Buybacks reduce the number of shares in circulation and can increase each remaining shareholder's proportionate ownership. Their long-term benefit still depends on the price paid and the company's ability to continue investing adequately in growth.

The interim dividend increased 17.0% to 55.0p per share. It is due to be paid on 16 September 2026 to shareholders on the register on 14 August, with an ex-dividend date of 13 August.

Readers can follow future announcements and company coverage on the London Stock Exchange Group PLC share page.

Guidance has moved higher

Management narrowed its 2026 organic constant currency income growth guidance, excluding recoveries, to 7.0% to 7.5%. The previous range was 6.5% to 7.5%, so the improvement comes from raising the lower end rather than increasing the maximum expectation.

Constant currency EBITDA margin guidance increased from an improvement of 80 to 100 basis points to around 100 basis points.

Other guidance was set at:

• Capital expenditure intensity of approximately 9.5%
• Equity free cash flow of at least £2.7 billion
• An underlying effective tax rate of 24% to 25%

The cash flow target provides support for investment, dividends and buybacks. Capital expenditure of approximately 9.5% of income is still meaningful, reflecting the demands of maintaining and developing LSEG's technology and data infrastructure.

What matters next for LSEG investors

The strongest feature of these results is the combination of growth and operating leverage. Income rose across every division, adjusted expenses grew more slowly than revenue, margins expanded and cash generation strengthened.

There are still points to watch. Part of the margin improvement came from the revised SwapClear agreement rather than purely underlying efficiency. Data & Analytics growth remained below the rates achieved by FTSE Russell, Risk Intelligence and Markets. Most importantly, the RNS provides evidence of AI adoption but not yet a disclosed figure for AI-related revenue.

Even so, this was a strong first half. LSEG enters the remainder of 2026 with improved guidance, accelerating subscription indicators, a large product pipeline and the financial capacity to return capital while continuing to invest. Future results will need to show that AI engagement is becoming measurable commercial growth and that the underlying portion of the margin improvement can continue.