London Stock Exchange Group beats analyst estimates with £1.9bn income
The chief of the London Stock Exchange Group said its “strategy is working” today as it reported a 16.2 per cent rise in income and doubled down on its profit targets.
The owner of the London Stock Exchange, which has been broadening its reach into the private markets in recent years, beat analyst expectations as it said total income in the three months through September excluding recoveries hit £1.9bn – up seven per cent adjusting for Ukraine and Russia conflict impact.
Gross profit in the third quarter rose to £1.7bn, LSEG said, roughly in line with analysts consensus.
The group was buoyed by chaos on the markets at the end of the quarter as traders rushed to convert assets into cash in the wake of Liz Truss’ mini-budget. Capital markets revenues were up 8.6 per cent in the period.
Group chief David Schwimmer said the results showed the strength of the fimr’s business model amid a turbulent period.
“Our strategy is working, delivering growth and increasing efficiency,” he said in a statement.
“We are investing organically for growth and completed the acquisition of TORA during the quarter to strengthen our offering in Trading & Banking.”
LSEG has been on an acquisition push in recent months and completed the purchase of trading platform TORA for $325m.
The results come after the firm announced it would return £750m to shareholders. Bosses said £235 million had been returned in the third quarter.
Shares in the firm dipped beyond 2.5 per cent in early trading despite the consensus beat.