RELX Starts £125 Million Buyback Under £2.25 Billion Plan

Key Facts

RELX began an irrevocable, non-discretionary programme to repurchase ordinary shares for £125 million between September 7 and October 21, 2026. It followed a £150 million programme completed on September 4, 2026.

The two programmes form part of RELX's plan to deploy £2.25 billion on share buybacks during 2026, announced by the company on February 12, 2026. The new tranche is therefore one component of an existing annual programme, not a separate capital-allocation initiative.

RELX said the programme's purpose is to reduce capital and that purchased shares will be held in treasury. That is more precise than saying issued share capital will fall immediately, because the announcement does not say the shares will be cancelled upon purchase.

J.P. Morgan Securities plc will manage the programme and make trading decisions independently of RELX. Purchases will operate under the authority approved by shareholders at the April 23, 2026 meeting, which, after accounting for subsequent purchases, permits no more than 145.1 million ordinary shares to be bought.

RELX's first-half results provide context for the plan's scale: by June 30, 2026, the company had completed £1.75 billion of buybacks, followed by £100 million since July 1, and said £400 million would be deployed before the end of 2026. Adjusted cash-flow conversion was 98%, while net debt to EBITDA stood at 2.3 times.

For RELX investors, the announcement fixes the cash spend but not the final share count, which will depend on execution prices. Treasury shares may improve per-share arithmetic if other variables remain unchanged, but the programme does not guarantee a higher share price; its October 21, 2026 end date is the next specified milestone.