Informa (LSE:INF) looks heavily over-distributed on one common measure, yet the events and academic publishing group has been raising payouts and expanding its buyback. The disparity arises from how statutory profit has been affected by non-cash charges. A 10-month trading update on 17 November offers the next read on whether growth is meeting the company's promises.

The Dividend picture

As of 7 October 2026, Informa's annual dividend is 22.0p per share, with the latest payment at 7.5p. The trailing 12-month Yield was 2.6% and the indicated yield 2.5%, broadly in line with one another. Year-on-year dividend growth was 10.0%, which is a healthy rate for a company at this yield level.

The latest payment is the interim of 7.48p, declared on 30 July and up 6.9% from 7.0p. That increase is somewhat slower than the annual figure, so the final dividend will determine whether double-digit growth is maintained for 2026. Companies of this type usually weight the larger part of the annual payout towards the final dividend, which is approved by shareholders after the year-end accounts are complete.

Decoding a 129% payout

The trailing Payout Ratio stands at 129.5%. Read literally, this means Informa distributes more than its statutory earnings, a position that would ordinarily cause concern. For this company the figure needs a good deal of context.

Statutory Earnings have been heavily affected by non-cash items. The first half of 2025 included a Goodwill Impairment of £484.2m at Informa TechTarget, which produced a statutory loss for that period. In the first half of 2026, adjusting items of £225.0m were dominated by £178.7m of intangible asset amortisation. Statutory Diluted Earnings per Share recovered to 10.4p from a loss of 5.9p, against adjusted diluted earnings per share of 26.6p.

Measured against adjusted earnings per share of 55.6p for 2025, the 22.0p dividend is covered about 2.5 times, a much more comfortable picture. Investors should bear in mind that Amortisation and impairment reflect the real cost of past acquisitions, even if they do not affect the cash available to pay dividends today.

Why the two measures differ

When a group grows by acquisition, the price paid above the Book Value of the Assets acquired is recorded as goodwill and intangible assets. Intangibles such as customer relationships and brands are written off gradually through amortisation, while goodwill is tested for impairment and can be reduced sharply in a single period. Neither charge involves cash leaving the Business in the current year, which is why management focuses on adjusted earnings.

The difference is nonetheless more than a matter of presentation. Adjusted figures leave out costs that arose because earlier acquisitions were bought at a price the business has not fully earned back, and a sustained pattern of impairments can suggest that past deals were too expensive. Readers who want a balanced view are best served by looking at both measures together, alongside free cash flow, rather than relying on either alone.

Short streaks, large buybacks

The record is brief, with four years of continuous payments and three years of continuous growth. Those short numbers point to an interruption in payments a few years ago, and Informa cannot claim the long-run reliability of the FTSE 100's established dividend payers.

Buybacks do much of the heavy lifting. Informa increased its 2026 programme to £350m from £250m at the half-year stage, bringing total repurchases since 2022 to about £2.2bn. Leverage was 2.4 times at the half year, down from 2.5 times a year earlier, and net Debt was £3,027.5m. Leverage here means net debt relative to adjusted earnings before interest, tax, Depreciation and amortisation, a measure that lenders and rating agencies watch closely.

Trading and recent developments

The half-year numbers showed underlying Revenue growth of 5.1%, or 6.8% excluding non-recurring data contracts. Adjusted diluted earnings per share fell 10.7%, reflecting the rescheduling of events in the Middle East and higher minority profits from a partnership. Management reaffirmed its full-year targets of about 6% underlying revenue growth, B2B Live Events growth of at least 7%, and double-digit underlying growth in adjusted earnings per share.

That last promise implies a firmer second half. In June, Informa also said it expected faster growth in 2027, with forward bookings for the first half of that year exceeding $600m. Forward bookings matter in an events business because exhibitors and sponsors commit well ahead, giving unusual visibility on revenue.

A Credit rating agency affirmed the group's BBB rating on 14 October, an investment-grade level, a reassuring signal for a group carrying more than £3bn of net debt. A separate Acquisition of Clarion is expected to complete in the fourth quarter, subject to regulatory clearances. Buying a further events business would add scale and, over time, adds to the Cash Flow supporting distributions, but it also raises questions about leverage that management will need to address.

What to watch on 17 November

The update should reveal whether the second-half recovery in earnings is on course, particularly given the rescheduled Middle East events. Confirmation of double-digit adjusted earnings growth would support another sizeable final dividend at results on 11 March 2027. Progress on the Clarion deal and any comment on leverage after its completion will also be relevant for income investors, as will any update on how much Capital is earmarked for Buybacks next year.

For holders of LSE:INF, the central point is that the dividend should be judged on adjusted earnings and cash generation rather than on the statutory payout ratio alone. If adjusted earnings per share grow in line with the stated targets, cover should stay near the current level of about 2.5 times, leaving room for the buyback programme and the dividend to coexist. The next set of figures will show whether that arithmetic holds, and whether LSE:INF can keep rewarding shareholders while it continues to acquire.