Informa
LEI: 5493006VM2LKUPSEDU20
Informa PLC: Press Release
8 May 2024
Market Update
Continuing momentum and
growth
Informa (LSE: INF.L), the
international B2B Events, B2B Digital Services and Academic
Markets Group, today issued an update on
trading, key appointments and progress on its TechTarget
combination.
Stephen A.
Carter, Group Chief Executive, Informa,
said:
"All Informa's businesses are performing ahead or in
line with 2024 targets, delivering growth and momentum which sees
us delivering at the upper end of guidance range. Consequently, we
are increasing our 2024 share buyback program by c.50% to £500m. At
the same time, we are strengthening our Leadership Team with key
appointments, both in our Academic Markets business, as well as in
the management of our Data, Brands and Intellectual Property."
He concluded: "I am thrilled
to see Executives of Penny and Jill's quality and experience
joining the leadership team at Informa. Our business is in growth,
it is expanding, and we see lots of opportunities ahead. I am
convinced they will help us get there faster and capture more of
them."
|
Highlights
·
Strong operating
performance…All businesses delivering ahead
of or in line with 2024 targets; we are now performing to the upper
end of market guidance on revenues, adjusted operating profit and
free cash flow;
·
Executive
appointments:
o Taylor & Francis Chief
Executive…Penny Ladkin-Brand joins the
Informa Leadership Team as the Chief Executive of Taylor &
Francis; bringing extensive experience of specialist publishing,
online platforms and digital acceleration;
o Group Chief Marketing
Officer… Jill Dougan joins the Informa
Leadership Team in the newly created role of Group Chief Marketing
Officer to create further value from Informa's extensive Brand
portfolio, Intellectual Property and growing First Party
Data;
·
TechTarget combination
progress…Proposed creation of NASDAQ-listed
New TechTarget, as a Leading B2B Growth Accelerator for Technology
companies, on track for Q4 2024;
·
Accelerating Shareholder
Returns… 2024 share buyback programme
increased to £500m, expanded by a further £160m;
·
AI Partnership and Data Access
Agreement…Non-exclusive agreement signed
with Microsoft, including Access to Advanced Learning content and
data, and a Partnership to explore AI expert
applications.
Market Guidance
|
2024
Updated Guidance
|
2024
Current Guidance
|
2023
Reported
|
Group
Underlying Revenue Growth
|
High
single digit
|
High
single digit
|
30.4%
|
Revenues
|
Upper end
of range
|
£3,450m -
£3,500m
|
£3,189.6m
|
Adjusted
Operating Profit
|
Upper end
of range
|
£950m -
£970m
|
£853.8m
|
Adjusted
Free Cash Flow
|
£720m++
|
£720m+
|
£631.7m
|
B2B Markets
Underlying Revenue Growth
|
High
single digit
|
High
single digit
|
39.2%
|
Academic
Markets Underlying Revenue Growth
|
5%+
|
4%
|
3.0%
|
*Guidance excludes any effect of the
proposed combination with TechTarget; GBP/USD 1.25
Strong Operating
Performance
The Informa Group has continued to
deliver strong performances through the first four months of the
year, with underlying revenue growth across both
B2B
Markets (Informa Markets, Informa
Connect and Informa Tech) and Academic
Markets in line or ahead of our
expectations.
Momentum is strong across all major
geographic regions, including North America, Asia and IMEA (India,
Middle East & Africa), with notable performances in
B2B
Markets in Healthcare
(Arab
Health), Manufacturing
(IME
West), Technology (LEAP), Real Estate &
Construction (World of Concrete) and
Aviation (MRO Americas), amongst
others.
Our first major B2B brand that
traded in Mainland China in 2024 was
in Hospitality & Food in April
(Hotelex Shanghai & Expo
Food), delivering healthy year-on-year growth, and our
major Beauty brand (China Beauty) in May is tracking to
plan.
Key 2023 portfolio additions
(Tarsus, Winsight, HIMSS) are contributing as planned to our
momentum and growth. The flagship HIMSS healthcare technology brand took
place in March, delivering attendee and exhibitor growth, and the
major Food
Services brand (National Restaurant Association Show)
is similarly on track to deliver strong year-on-year growth in
May.
In Academic
Markets, we completed the first
quarter with strong subscription renewals and continued growth in
Open Research submission and publishing volumes. Today's
Partnership and Data Access Agreement with Microsoft, which runs
from 2024 to 2027, will extend the use of AI within our business
and underlines the unique value of our Intellectual Property. The
combination of operating performance and this partnership agreement
sees us performing to full year underlying revenue growth of
5%+.
Executive Appointments
Informa has confirmed two key
additions to the Informa Executive Leadership Team, adding
further strength both in the management of our Brands and
Intellectual Property and in the Leadership of our Academic Markets
business.
Penny Ladkin-Brand appointed Chief
Executive of Taylor & Francis
Penny Ladkin-Brand joins the Informa
Leadership Team as the Chief Executive of Taylor & Francis. She
brings considerable growth-oriented leadership experience in
specialist publishing, digital acceleration and the development of
online platforms.
Penny is currently Chief Financial
and Strategy Officer at Future plc, having previously been
Commercial Director at Autotrader Plc. Penny joined Future, a
print-led specialist media business in 2015 and partnered with the
CEO to grow the business tenfold into a specialist media platform
through a combination of organic and inorganic growth. Penny is
also Chair of Next 15 Group Plc, the data-driven growth
consultancy.
Penny Ladkin-Brand, said:
"I am delighted to
be joining Informa, an ambitious, growth-oriented business. Taylor
& Francis is a leader in Scholarly Research, an international
business and an innovator in both Humanities and Science, with
significant potential for further growth, innovation and expansion.
I am excited by the many opportunities ahead."
Jill Dougan appointed Group Chief
Marketing Officer
Jill Dougan joins the Informa
Leadership Team in the newly created role of Group Chief Marketing
Officer. She brings over 30 years' experience in Sales, Marketing,
Customer Insights, Data Insights and Brand, both in B2B and B2C
companies, latterly through a number of senior roles at Centrica
plc.
As the Group continues to expand
internationally, the effective management of our First Party Data,
Brands and Intellectual Property is becoming increasingly important
in unlocking new revenue opportunities. This is illustrated by
today's Partnership and Access Agreement (Intellectual Property)
and similarly through our recent expansion in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia (Brands) and the TechTarget combination (First Party
Data).
Jill will focus on creating further
value from Informa's First Party Data, Brands and Intellectual
Property.
Jill Dougan, said:
"I am excited to be
joining such a fast-paced, international business as Informa. The
Group has a unique set of specialist brands and first party data,
and significant embedded value across its portfolio of intellectual
property, creating numerous growth opportunities in today's
increasingly data-driven, digitally enabled world. I am looking
forward to contributing to the Group's future success."
AI Development and
Deployment
We continue to drive product
benefits and operating efficiencies through the deployment of AI
across both our B2B
Markets businesses (Informa
Markets, Informa Connect, Informa Tech) and our Academic Markets business, Taylor & Francis, including in
research submission, authenticity screening, validation and
accuracy, customer response and content summaries.
Special expert agents are becoming a
feature of many AI deployments, and today we are increasing our
focus on this area with Microsoft through a non-exclusive
Partnership and Data Access Agreement. This expands on our existing
enterprise technology partnership to explore how the use of AI can
drive innovation and improve productivity across the Informa
Group.
Specifically, this agreement
includes exploring the development of specialised expert agents
based on unique content, starting with Taylor & Francis'
Advanced Learning content and data.
The partnership will focus on four
core areas:
1. Improved Productivity: Explore
how AI can enable more effective ways of working at Informa,
streamlining operations, utilising Copilot for Microsoft 365 to
enable Colleagues to work more efficiently, and enhancing the
capabilities of Informa's existing AI and data platforms
(IIRIS);
2. Citation Engine: Collaborate to
further develop automated citation referencing, using the latest
technology to improve speed and accuracy;
3. Specialist Expert Agent: Explore the
development of specialised expert agents for customers such as
authors and librarians to assist with research, understanding and
new knowledge creation/sharing;
4. Data Access: Provide non-exclusive
access to Advanced Learning content and data to help improve
relevance and performance of AI systems.
The agreement includes payment to
Informa of both an initial data access fee ($10m+) and a recurring
payment across three years (2025, 2026, 2027).
Similar to other Informa contracts,
the agreement protects intellectual property rights, including
limits on verbatim text extracts and alignment on the importance of
detailed citation references.
TechTarget proposed combination on
track for Q4 2024
We continue to make good progress on
the proposed combination of Informa Tech's
Digital Businesses (Industry Dive, Omdia,
Canalys, NetLine and the
Digital Media
Brands) with US-listed
TechTarget.
New
TechTarget, which will be
headquartered and listed in the US, will accelerate Informa's
ambition in B2B Digital Services, with a clear goal to become a
leading B2B growth accelerator for Technology companies.
The procedural elements of the
combination continue to progress to plan, with the Hart-Scott
Rodino's waiting period having expired and with the focus now on
preparing the Proxy Statement for filing with the SEC. On current
course and speed, we continue to expect completion in the second
half of the year, with New TechTarget
launching from Q4 2024.
Accelerating Shareholder
Returns
The Group's strong operating
performance, continuing cash flow strength and forward visibility
lead to a c.50% increase in our 2024 share buyback commitment to
£500m.
To date in 2024, we have bought back
c.£180m of shares at an average share price of c.798p, leading to
the cancellation of c.22.5m shares.
Enquiries
|
|
Stephen A. Carter, Group
Chief Executive
|
+44 (0) 20 8052 0400
|
Gareth Wright, Group Finance
Director
|
+44 (0) 20 8052 0400
|
Richard Menzies-Gow, Director
of IR & Communications
|
+44 (0) 20 8052 2787
|
Tim Burt / Anthony Di Natale
- Teneo
|
+44 (0) 7583 413254 / +44 (0) 7880 715975
|
About TechTarget
TechTarget (NASDAQ: TTGT) is the
global leader in purchase intent-driven marketing and sales
services that deliver business impact for enterprise technology
companies. By creating abundant, high-quality editorial content
across approximately 150 websites and 1,000 webinars and virtual
event channels, TechTarget attracts and nurtures communities of
technology buyers researching their companies' information
technology needs. By understanding these buyers' content
consumption behaviours, TechTarget creates the purchase intent
insights that fuel efficient and effective marketing and sales
activities for clients around the world.
TechTarget has offices in Boston,
London, Munich, New York, Paris, Singapore and Sydney. For more
information, visit techtarget.com and follow us on Twitter
@TechTarget.
In 2023, TechTarget reported revenue
of $230m and income before provision for income taxes of $14.4m.
Its reported gross assets at 31 December 2023 were
$699.9m.
About Informa Tech
Informa Tech is a leading provider
of market insight and market access to the global business
technology community. Through in-depth expertise and an engaged
audience community, Informa Tech helps business professionals make
better technology decisions and marketers reach the most powerful
tech buyers and influencers in the world. Across its portfolio of
over 100+ trusted brands, Informa Tech has over 1000 industry
experts, including over 400 research analysts and consultants in
global research group Omdia, and a monthly audience reach of over
125 million. Informa Tech is a division of FTSE 100 company Informa
plc. For more information, visit informatech.com
The digital businesses of Informa
Tech being combined with TechTarget include Industry Dive
(Specialist B2B Content/Brands), Omdia (Specialist Tech Research),
NetLine (Demand Generation and Buyer Intent), and other Specialist
Tech Digital Media Brands (eg Information Week, Light Reading,
Heavy Reading, AI Business).
In 2022, these digital businesses
delivered revenue of £220.7m and statutory profit before tax, post
exceptional and amortisation costs of £2.9m.
Additional Information and Where to
Find It
In connection with the proposed transaction
(the "proposed
transaction") between Informa and TechTarget,
TechTarget CombineCo, Inc.
("NewCo"
or, after the completion of the proposed transaction, "New TechTarget") and TechTarget
will prepare and file relevant materials with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including a registration
statement on Form S-4 that will contain a proxy statement of
TechTarget that also constitutes a prospectus of NewCo (the
"Proxy
Statement/Prospectus"). A definitive Proxy
Statement/Prospectus will be mailed to stockholders of TechTarget.
TechTarget and NewCo may also file other documents with the SEC
regarding the proposed transaction. This communication is not a
substitute for any proxy statement, registration statement or
prospectus, or any other document that TechTarget or NewCo (as
applicable) may file with the SEC in connection with the proposed
transaction. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING OR INVESTMENT DECISION,
INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF TECHTARGET ARE URGED TO READ
CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS WHEN
IT BECOMES AVAILABLE AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT ARE
FILED OR WILL BE FILED BY TECHTARGET OR NEWCO WITH THE SEC, AS WELL
AS ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO THESE DOCUMENTS, IN CONNECTION
WITH THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION, WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE
THESE DOCUMENTS CONTAIN OR WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT
THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND RELATED MATTERS. TechTarget investors
and security holders will be able to obtain free copies of the
Proxy Statement/Prospectus (when they become available), as well as
other filings containing important information about TechTarget,
NewCo, and other parties to the proposed transaction (including
Informa), without charge through the website maintained by the SEC
at www.sec.gov. Copies of the
documents filed with the SEC by TechTarget will be available free
of charge under the tab "Financials" on the "Investor Relations"
page of TechTarget's internet website at www.TechTarget.com or by
contacting TechTarget's Investor Relations Department at
investor@TechTarget.com.
Participants in the
Solicitation
Informa, TechTarget, NewCo, and their respective
directors and certain of their respective executive officers and
employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of
proxies from TechTarget's stockholders in connection with the
proposed transaction. Information regarding the directors of
Informa is contained in Informa's annual reports and accounts
available on Informa's website at www.informa.com/investors/
and in the National Storage Mechanism at
data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism. Information
regarding the directors and executive officers of TechTarget is
contained in TechTarget's proxy statement for its 2023 annual
meeting of stockholders, filed with the SEC on April 19, 2023, and
in other documents subsequently filed with the SEC. Additional
information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitations
and a description of their direct or indirect interests, by
security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in the Proxy
Statement/Prospectus and other relevant materials filed with the
SEC (when they become available). These documents can be obtained
free of charge from the sources indicated above.
No Offer or Solicitation
This is for informational purposes only and is not
intended to and does not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation
of any vote or approval, nor shall there be any offer, solicitation
or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer,
solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or
qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.
No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a
prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
This contains "forward-looking" statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that involve substantial
risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than historical
facts, are forward-looking statements, including: statements
regarding the expected timing and structure of the proposed
transaction; the ability of the parties to complete the proposed
transaction considering the various closing conditions; the
expected benefits of the proposed transaction, such as improved
operations, enhanced revenues and cash flow, synergies, growth
potential, market profile, business plans, expanded portfolio and
financial strength; the competitive ability and position of NewCo
following completion of the proposed transaction; legal, economic,
and regulatory conditions; and any assumptions underlying any of
the foregoing. Forward-looking statements concern future
circumstances and results and other statements that are not
historical facts and are sometimes identified by the words "may,"
"will," "should," "potential," "intend," "expect,"
"endeavor," "seek," "anticipate," "estimate," "overestimate,"
"underestimate," "believe," "plan," "could," "would," "project,"
"predict," "continue," "target," or the negatives of these words or
other similar terms or expressions that concern TechTarget's or
NewCo's expectations, strategy, priorities, plans, or intentions.
Forward-looking statements are based upon current plans, estimates,
and expectations that are subject to risks, uncertainties, and
assumptions. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties
materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect,
actual results may vary materially from those indicated or
anticipated by such forward-looking statements. We can give no
assurance that such plans, estimates, or expectations will be
achieved, and therefore, actual results may differ materially from
any plans, estimates, or expectations in such forward-looking
statements.
Important factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from such plans, estimates, or expectations
include, among others: that one or more closing conditions to the
proposed transaction, including certain regulatory approvals, may
not be satisfied or waived, on a timely basis or otherwise,
including that a governmental entity may prohibit, delay, or refuse
to grant approval for the consummation of the proposed transaction,
may require conditions, limitations, or restrictions in connection
with such approvals or that the required approval by the
shareholders of TechTarget may not be obtained; the risk that the
proposed transaction may not be completed in the time frame
expected by Informa, TechTarget, or NewCo, or at all; unexpected
costs, charges, or expenses resulting from the proposed
transaction; uncertainty of the expected financial performance of
NewCo following completion of the proposed transaction; failure to
realize the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction,
including as a result of delay in completing the proposed
transaction or integrating the relevant portion of the Informa Tech
business with the business of TechTarget; the ability of NewCo to
implement its business strategy; difficulties and delays in
achieving revenue and cost synergies of NewCo; the occurrence of
any event that could give rise to termination of the proposed
transaction; potential litigation in connection with the proposed
transaction or other settlements or investigations that may affect
the timing or occurrence of the proposed transaction or result in
significant costs of defense, indemnification, and liability;
evolving legal, regulatory, and tax regimes; changes in economic,
financial, political, and regulatory conditions, in the United
States and elsewhere, and other factors that contribute to
uncertainty and volatility, natural and man-made disasters, civil
unrest, pandemics, geopolitical uncertainty, and conditions that
may result from legislative, regulatory, trade, and policy changes
associated with the current or subsequent U.S. administration;
risks related to disruption of management time from ongoing
business operations due to the proposed transaction; certain
restrictions during the pendency of the proposed transaction that
may impact TechTarget's ability to pursue certain business
opportunities or strategic transactions; Informa's, TechTarget's,
and NewCo's ability to meet expectations regarding the accounting
and tax treatments of the proposed transaction; the risk that any
announcements relating to the proposed transaction could have
adverse effects on the market price of TechTarget's common stock;
the risk that the proposed transaction and its announcement could
have an adverse effect on the ability of TechTarget to retain
customers and retain and hire key personnel and maintain
relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, stockholders,
strategic partners and other business relationships and on its
operating results and business generally; market acceptance of
TechTarget's and the relevant portion of the Informa Tech
business's products and services; the impact of pandemics and
future health epidemics and any related economic downturns, on
TechTarget's business and the markets in which it and its customers
operate; changes in economic or regulatory conditions or other
trends affecting the internet, internet advertising and information
technology industries; data privacy and artificial intelligence
laws, rules, and regulations; the impact of foreign currency
exchange rates; certain macroeconomic factors facing the global
economy, including instability in the regional banking sector,
disruptions in the capital markets, economic sanctions and economic
slowdowns or recessions, rising inflation and interest rate
fluctuations on TechTarget's and the relevant portion of the
Informa Tech business's results; and other matters included in
TechTarget's filings with the SEC, including in Item 1A of its
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 and
its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September
30, 2023. These risks, as well as other risks associated with the
proposed transaction, will be more fully discussed in the Proxy
Statement/Prospectus that will be included in the registration
statement on Form S-4 that will be filed with the SEC in connection
with the proposed transaction. While the list of factors presented
here is, and the list of factors to be presented in registration
statement on Form S-4 will be, considered representative, no such
list should be considered to be a complete statement of all
potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present
significant additional obstacles to the realization of
forward-looking statements. We caution you not to place undue
reliance on any of these forward-looking statements as they are not
guarantees of future performance or outcomes and that actual
performance and outcomes, including, without limitation, our actual
results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and the
development of new markets or market segments in which we operate,
may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the
forward-looking statements contained in this communication.
Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the
date of this communication. None of Informa, TechTarget, or NewCo
undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information or developments, future
events, or otherwise, except as required by law. Neither future
distribution of this communication nor the continued availability
of this communication in archive form on TechTarget's website at
www.TechTarget.com or Informa's website at www.informa.com/investors
should be deemed to constitute an update or re-affirmation of these
statements as of any future date.