RELX 1st Half Pretax Profit Rises 22%; Backs Fiscal Year Guidance

By Ian Walker

LONDON--RELX PLC (REL.LN) Thursday reported a 22% rise in first-half pretax profit and backed its full-year guidance.

The Anglo-Dutch information and analytics company said it has bought 500 million pounds ($659.5 million) of its shares in the first half, and plans to buy back a further GBP200 million during the rest of the year.

It also said the company expects to deliver another year of underlying revenue, profit, and earnings growth in 2016, as previously guided. Underlying figures are based on constant currencies and one-off items.

For the half year ended June 30, RELX made a pretax profit of GBP733 million, compared with GBP601 million a year earlier, on revenue 9.8% higher at GBP3.26 billion. Underlying pretax profit rose to GBP920 million, from GBP834 million for the half year ended June 30, 2015.

The board has declared an interim dividend of 10.25 pence per PLC share, up from 7.4 pence, and EUR0.122 per NV share, up from EUR0.115

Write to Ian Walker at [e-mail]; @IanWalk40289749

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 28, 2016 03:06 ET (07:06 GMT)

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