Relx reassures as AI fears hit data stocks
Relx has sought to steady nerves with Thursday’s trading update, following a week of sharp AI-driven sell-off across legal and data stocks.
The digital tool giant reported full-year results this morning showing revenue of £9.59bn for 2025, up from £9.43bn in 2024, representing seven per cent underlying growth.
Reported operating profit rose to £3.03bn from £2.86bn a year earlier, while reported earnings per share increased to 112.6p from 103.6p.
The board proposed a full-year dividend of 67.5p, up from 63.0p, and confirmed it completed £1.5bn of share buybacks during the year.
The results land just days after shares in Relx and other European data and legal information providers tumbled following the launch of a new legal productivity tool from Anthropic.
The AI tool, designed to assist with contract review and compliance tasks, ignited concerns that high-margin subscription products could face increased competition from AI systems.
Relx shares had come under pressure alongside peers including Thomson Reuters and Wolters Kluwer, as investors questioned whether generative AI could erode pricing power in legal and professional information markets.
Analytics growth and AI integration
Chief executive Erik Engstrom said on Thursday: “Relx delivered strong underlying revenue and profit growth and strong new sales in 2025”.
He added that the company’s growth trajectory continues to be driven by a shift towards higher-growth analytics and decision tools.
Addressing AI directly, Engstrom said: “The continued evolution of artificial intelligence is enabling us to add more value to our customers, as we embed additional functionality in our products, and to develop and launch products at a faster pace, while continuing to manage cost growth below revenue growth.”
The group said it saw continued strong growth in its risk division, improving momentum in scientific, technical & medical, and a further step up in growth in legal.
Looking ahead, Relx said it expects another year of underlying revenue and operating profit growth in 2026, as well as growth in earnings per share.