Informa (LON:INF) reported 6.8% underlying revenue growth for the first half of 2026, supported by growth in its B2B live-events and academic-markets operations, while disruption in parts of the Middle East weighed on reported profitability.
The company said underlying profit growth was 6.9% in the half year. It said that, absent the loss of revenue from Middle East events since March while costs continued, underlying profit growth would have been closer to 10%. Informa reaffirmed its full-year guidance, increased its share buyback program and raised its interim dividend in line with first-half performance.
Live events growth offsets regional disruption
Informa’s B2B live-events business delivered 8% growth in the first half, with management saying performance was broadly strong across geographies, though results varied by category and brand. The company expects growth to accelerate in the second half and said it was targeting more than 7% growth for the full year, compared with estimated market growth of approximately 5% to 5.5%.
Management said the group was responding to disruption in the Middle East by seeking stronger performance elsewhere, increasing domestic and intra-regional participation, protecting customer relationships and rescheduling selected events. It said it has retained its regional cost base rather than reducing staff or exiting markets, arguing that this preserves the ability to participate in a future recovery and medium-term growth.
About 65 events are scheduled to run in the region during the second half, including Middle East Energy in Dubai and the LEAP technology event in Riyadh. Management said the impact differs substantially by event and country. International exhibitor participation can be affected by logistics, including the ability to transport exhibition equipment, while locally based and regional participants may remain more resilient.
Group Finance Director Gareth Wright said Informa had incorporated visible event deferrals into its outlook and could still meet guidance. Some customers are moving participation into 2027, while the company is also examining targeted domestic launches in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia during the second half.
Management said it remained confident that additional event-venue capacity coming online in markets including the UAE, India, Thailand, China and parts of North America could be filled over time. In the UAE, it cited further capacity additions following a major expansion at Dubai Exhibition Centre.
Pricing across the portfolio is expected to rise by roughly 2% to 3% on average for 2027 events, management said, although the rate will vary by market and China is not expected to be a price-led market.
Academic markets improves, while TechTarget remains a focus
Taylor & Francis generated underlying growth of just over 5% in the first half. Management said the unit is moving from a historical growth range of around 1% to 2% toward a target of at least 5%, which it expects to achieve by 2027.
The company is investing in international sales, technology and customer segments beyond traditional academic institutions and librarians, including corporate and “prosumer” users. Management said the strategy is built around demand for trusted, validated and authenticated content, as well as improvements in how customers discover, share and use research content.
Informa is also exploring further artificial-intelligence and data licensing arrangements for Taylor & Francis. Management said it was in discussions with two parties and had not seen a material change in pricing. It stressed that trusted content is becoming increasingly important for AI-related applications.
Wright was asked about the settlement of an Anthropic court case involving publishers. He said Informa was still assessing the possible impact, including titles covered and associated costs, and expected to provide an update with its second-half results. He said any settlement would likely not be recorded as revenue and would not alter the group’s full-year Taylor & Francis revenue outlook.
Management also noted that journal submission volumes remain elevated. It said the challenge is not content supply, but processing submissions efficiently while maintaining or improving quality standards. The company sees technology and machine intelligence as tools that could help shorten those processes.
Meanwhile, Informa TechTarget posted a 1% revenue decline, versus the growth management had originally expected. Management attributed the shortfall to AI-related revenue displacement, weakness in the U.S. enterprise technology market, operational execution issues and the complexity of combining businesses. It estimated the gap between the unit’s current performance and its previous growth expectation at $30 million to $50 million of revenue.
Management said its immediate goal is to return Informa TechTarget to growth this year before improving performance further in 2027.
Visibility into 2026 and 2027
Informa said it can currently see about 85% of its expected 2026 revenue and approximately £800 million of revenue for 2027. Subscription revenues in academic markets are running ahead of their usual pace, according to management.
The company expects 2027 to benefit from the return of biennial events, which management said typically carry higher growth because of pent-up demand and the contribution of larger brands. It said forward bookings for 2027 were slightly ahead of the comparable point last year, with no currently visible issue significant enough to alter its broader outlook.
Wright said first-half margin was about 2 percentage points below the prior-year period because Informa did not operate certain events in Dubai and Saudi Arabia during the second quarter while retaining indirect costs. However, he said the company expects full-year margin to increase slightly year over year after operating its full event portfolio in the second half.
Management said its “One Informa” program remains central to its strategy, combining data, systems, marketing, sales and AI-enabled capabilities across the company’s expanding brand portfolio. The goal, it said, is to strengthen operational infrastructure and support further commercial growth across its event, knowledge and digital businesses.
About Informa (LON:INF)
Our events, digital products and academic research services connect specialists with knowledge, helping them learn more, know more and do more.
We do this in dozens of specialist markets and subject matter categories, including in Healthcare & Pharma, Technology, Finance, Education, Marketing, Health & Nutrition, Foodservice, and many more.
And we do this through a range of products and services, including major live events, specialist media and content, expert research articles, books and open research platforms, accredited training, buyer discovery services, and digital demand and lead-generation services.
