Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Management reported a strong 2025 with core operating EPS up 9%, Solvency II pro‑forma coverage at 210%, and launched a record £1.2bn share buyback alongside a 2% DPS increase.
• The group materially simplified its portfolio, selling the US protection business to Meiji Yasuda for $2.3bn (Meiji building ~5% stake) and moving £1.5bn of disposals into a Corporate Investments Unit.
• Material headwinds include 2025 investment variances of £771m and expected M&A/transformation costs of ~£100–200m p.a. for the next two years, plus a temporary Tier‑2 eligibility restriction with pro‑forma debt leverage around 33%; management set a new medium‑term Solvency II operating range of 160%–190% to guide future buybacks/dividends.

Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported GBX 831 earnings per share for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Legal & General Group had a return on equity of 3.89% and a net margin of 1.49%.

Here are the key takeaways from Legal & General Group's conference call:

• Management reported a strong 2025 with core operating EPS up 9%, Solvency II pro‑forma coverage at 210%, OSG up 5% to £1.5bn and a 2% DPS increase while launching a record £1.2bn share buyback.
• The group has materially simplified the portfolio and secured strategic capital: it sold the US protection business to Meiji Yasuda for $2.3bn (Meiji building a ~5% stake) and has moved £1.5bn of disposals into a Corporate Investments Unit.
• Commercial momentum across core divisions: ~£12bn of PRT written (UK ~25% share) at low capital strain, Asset Management reached an ANNR inflection with £34m of annualized net new revenue and private markets AUM at £75bn, and Retail DC assets grew 21% to £114bn.
• Material headwinds remain: 2025 investment variances were sizeable (£771m), the group expects ongoing M&A/transformation costs of ~£100–200m p.a. for the next two years, and there is a temporary Tier‑2 eligibility restriction while debt leverage sits ~33% pro‑forma.
• Management set a new medium‑term Solvency II operating range of 160%–190% and said future buybacks/dividend policy will be assessed against that range, market conditions and growth opportunities rather than be automatic triggers.

Legal & General Group Price Performance

Shares of Legal & General Group stock opened at GBX 240.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of £13.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.90, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50-day moving average is GBX 265.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 250.73. Legal & General Group has a 1 year low of GBX 206.80 and a 1 year high of GBX 279.50.

Insider Activity at Legal & General Group

In other news, insider John Kingman acquired 614 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 267 per share, with a total value of £1,639.38. Also, insider Ric Lewis bought 851 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 267 per share, for a total transaction of £2,272.17. Insiders bought 10,428 shares of company stock valued at $2,757,069 over the last three months. 0.59% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Legal & General Group from GBX 249 to GBX 263 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of GBX 258.40.

About Legal & General Group

Legal & General Group Plc provides various insurance products and services in the United Kingdom, the United States, and internationally. It operates in Legal & General Retirement Institutional (LGRI), Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), Legal & General Capital (LGC), and Retail segments. The LGRI segment offers annuity contracts with guaranteed income for a specified time; and longevity insurance products. The LGIM segment offers index fund management; active fixed income funds and liquidity funds; active equity management; solution and liability driven investment; multi-asset funds; corporate pension scheme solutions; and real assets.

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