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* Dividend increased by 3%
* Says 95% of business is growing
* Outlook for exhibitions remains uncertain
(Adds shares, background)
By Kate Holton
LONDON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - European information provider
Relx plans to raise its dividend by 3%, it said on
Thursday, citing pandemic-driven demand for services from online
identity checks to digital learning in science.
The British group, which outperformed the FTSE 100 index for
10 years after transforming from an advertising-supported media
group to the more stable world of data and analytics, said its
main science, legal and risk divisions had posted underlying
growth despite the turmoil of 2020.
The one weakness that dragged down overall revenue and
profit came from its exhibitions arm, which had accounted for
16% of revenue in 2019 but struggled to host many major events
as global travel and face-to-face meetings ground to a halt in
2020.
The division posted an adjusted loss of 164 million pounds
($227 million), against a 331 million pound profit in 2019, with
the outlook for this year still uncertain.
"The fundamental long-term growth drivers of the business do
remain strong and we continue to invest behind our strategic
priorities so the overall direction is unchanged," finance
director Nick Luff told reporters.
Relx, previously called Reed Elsevier, said its three main
divisions continued to deliver underlying growth in revenue and
adjusted operating profit. They accounted for 95% of revenue in
2020.
It acquired 11 businesses for a total of 878 million pounds.
Among them was Emailage, which helps to spot online fraud.
Overall, Relx reported adjusted operating profit of 2.1
billion pounds ($2.9 billion), down from last year's 2.5 billion
pounds but in line with forecasts. Underlying revenue fell 9% to
7.1 billion pounds.
Analysts at Citi said the results indicated a slowdown in
the performance of the Scientific, Technical and Medical
division in the fourth quarter, preventing a rerating of the
stock. Relx also ruled out a resumption of its share buyback
this year.
The company's shares were up 1.5% in early trade. They have
fallen 12% over the past year, broadly in line with the FTSE
100.
($1 = 0.7222 pounds)
(Reporting by Kate Holton
Editing by David Goodman)
