Informa PLC Press Release

7 December 2021

2021-2024 Growth Acceleration Plan II

Informa (LSE: INF.L), the international B2B Markets, Knowledge Services and Business Intelligence Group will today outline its 2021-2024 Growth Acceleration Plan ("GAP II") at a Capital Markets Day in London.

2021-2024 GAP II

Informa is announcing a three-year programme with the ambition to create a more focused, higher growth business. Our ambition is to return Group revenues above 2019 levels (rebased for divestments) by the end of GAP II in 2024, whilst returning significant capital to shareholders in 2022.

The GAP II programme will prioritise the following six areas:

1.    Portfolio Focus: Informa will focus and accelerate its investment and efforts on the two markets where it has leadership positions of scale and which offer attractive opportunities for further growth and expansion: Academic Markets & Knowledge Services (Taylor & Francis) and B2B Markets & Digital Services (Informa Markets, Informa Connect, Informa Tech). The Group plans to divest Informa Intelligence which, although smaller in the context of the Group, has been transformed into a high-quality, high-performing and high-value portfolio of brands through targeted GAP I investment. Divestment will unlock the full extent of this value, providing funds to accelerate investment and expansion in our two businesses with scale leadership positions.

2.    Digital and Data: Our strategy of Market Specialisation continues to build depth in our chosen specialist markets and subject categories.

In Academic Markets, we will further expand our position in Open Research, strengthening our service offering and extending our customer reach to double underlying growth to 4%+ by 2024.

In B2B Markets, we will accelerate growth through the continued return of B2B Events and further expansion in B2B Market Access, including accelerating the rollout of Smart Events services, expanding in Audience Development (content-led lead generation programs, increasingly differentiated by data segmentation) and building a position in B2B Digital Demand Generation (data analytics that provide intent-based, qualified B2B buyers and sales prospects). This range of Digital Services expands our addressable market, providing access to broader customer budgets and additional opportunities for growth. Data lies at the heart of all these GAP II growth plans and is underpinned through our continued investment in our proprietary B2B customer data and analytics engine, IIRIS.

3.    Leadership & Talent: To Champion the Specialist remains our driving purpose and nowhere is that clearer than in the depth of Specialist talent in the Group. The GAP II programme will see continued investment in deepening our talent, with a particular focus on further strengthening our digital and data capability in key areas such as Digital Product Management, Data Science, Audience Engagement and Digital Marketing.

4.    Investment: The Group will invest up to £150m in incremental capital and net operating expenditure through the 2021-2024 GAP II period, funding programmes to expand our range of digital services and accelerate the pace of underlying growth. By 2024, this investment is expected to generate £150m-£200m of incremental revenue and a growing contribution to operating profit. Further growth acceleration will be driven by focused M&A that strengthens our existing market positions and accelerates our expansion in new areas. Today, we have announced the addition of the Premiere portfolio of B2B Events serving the growing US Professional Beauty & Personal Care market, as well as an investment in the Totem Smart Events platform and the addition of US-based NetLine, which brings established capabilities in Audience Development and B2B Digital Demand Generation.

5.    Shareholder Returns: Subject to full sale, completion and receipt of proceeds from the divestment of Informa Intelligence, the Group intends to return £1bn of embedded value to shareholders through the combination of a share buyback programme and a special dividend. This proposed return of capital is in line with the current balance sheet carrying value of these businesses and will, when completed, leave the remaining proceeds - which reflect the value created through GAP I in Informa Intelligence - to fund the next phase of accelerated growth at Informa through GAP II.  

In addition, improving visibility and continued strong growth in free cash flow will see the Group resume ordinary dividends with the 2022 Interim Dividend, at an initial annual pay-out ratio of one third of annual adjusted earnings.

6.    FasterForward: Informa was an early adopter of sustainable business practises that are embedded within GAP II. Through the 2021-2024 GAP II period, as part of our wider FasterForward programme, all products within Academic Markets & Knowledge Services will be certified Carbon Neutral Products and, within B2B Markets & Digital Services, in North America and EMEA we will deliver:

·      Energy - all B2B Events will be powered by renewable electricity;

·      Waste - all B2B Events will be part of the Better Stands programme, eradicating single use exhibition stands;

·      Content - all B2B Events will incorporate Sustainability Inside, providing on-site content that accelerates sustainable development in our customer markets.

·      Carbon - all B2B Events will save our customers more carbon than we emit, underlining our role as a carbon consolidator;

Capital Markets Day

Informa will today host a Capital Markets Day for analysts and investors from 1pm GMT / 8am EST at 240 Blackfriars in London, providing further details on our GAP II plans and ambitions. The event will provide the opportunity to meet with a wide range of Senior Management, a number of whom will be presenting alongside the Group Chief Executive.

A live stream of the event will also be available at www.informa.com.

Cautionary Statement

This announcement contains forward-looking statements, including in relation to the financial condition of the Group and the results of operations and businesses of the Group. Forward-looking statements are sometimes, but not always, identified by their use of a date in the future or such words and words of similar meaning as "ambition", "anticipates", "aspire", "aims", "due", "could", "may", "will", "should", "expects", "believes", "intends", "plans", "potential", "targets", "goal" or "estimates". Although the Group believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and actual results, performance and events could differ materially from those currently being anticipated, expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Factors which may cause future outcomes to differ from those foreseen in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those identified in the "Principal Risks and Uncertainties" section of the Group's Annual Report. Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement speak only as of the date of preparation of this announcement and have not been audited or otherwise independently verified. Past performance should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of future results and no reannouncement or warranty, express or implied, is made regarding future performance. The Group therefore cautions against placing undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a profit forecast.

Statements in this announcement reflect the knowledge and information available at the time of its preparation. Except as required by any applicable law or regulation, the Group expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking, including to release publicly any updates or revisions to any statements contained in this announcement to reflect any change in the Group's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

This announcement does not constitute or form part of any offer or invitation to purchase any securities of any person nor any offer or invitation to sell or issue, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe for, any such securities, nor shall it or any part of it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract or commitment or investment decisions relating thereto, nor does it constitute a recommendation regarding any securities.