Legal & General Group (LGEN) H1 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Core operating profit for H1 2024 rose 1% to £849m, with a robust solvency ratio of 223% and operating ROE up to 35.4% from 28.6% year-over-year.

• Store of future profit (CSM & RA) grew 7% year-on-year to £14.5bn.

• Interim dividend per share increased by 5% to 6.00p, supported by a strong solvency ratio and a £200m share buyback program, 46% complete.

• Strategic focus is on institutional retirement, asset management, and retail, with transformation initiatives including IT migration, operating model simplification, and asset disposals.

• Full-year 2024 core operating profit expected to grow by mid-single digits year-on-year.

Financial highlights

• Core operating earnings per share rose to 10.58p (H1 2023: 10.52p); operating return on equity increased to 35.4% from 28.6% year-on-year.

• SII operational surplus generation was £897m, with a coverage ratio of 223% and £8.8bn surplus.

• Investment variance from core businesses was negative £417m, compared to negative £296m in H1 2023.

• Interim dividend increased by 5%; £200m buyback program nearly 50% complete.

• Profit after tax was £223m, down from £377m year-over-year, mainly due to investment variances.

Outlook and guidance

• 2024 core operating profit expected to grow by mid-single digits year-on-year.

• Intention to grow full year 2024 dividend by 5%, with 2% annual growth targeted out to FY27 and further buybacks planned.

• Targeting 6–9% CAGR in core operating EPS (2024–27) and >20% operating ROE.

• Institutional retirement pipeline is the strongest ever, with £24bn+ in UK deals expected to transact in 2024.

• Asset management aims for £85bn in private markets AUM by 2028.