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What this page is: Delvantic's full research page for Relx PLC (RELX) — AI-driven forensic equity research: mechanical valuation models (DCF, EPV, anchored-PE, scenario) plus three independent AI lenses (Quality / Value / Sentiment). Everything below is rendered server-side; you are not missing content that requires JavaScript. All scores are predictions and research opinions, not financial advice.
Our current read (analysis of 2026-08-26): Designation Watch · Gem Score +14 (−100…+100 Quality+Value blend) · Quality 88 · Value -36 · Sentiment -3 (timing only, not weighted) · Composite fair value $33.00 vs $35.37 at analysis
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profile-header/price-overview— company profile, live quote, market capextended-analysis— the core: three AI lens reads with findings, scores, and the analyst memofuture-predictions— our forward price-band predictionsmarket-narrative/ai-findings/gpt-critique— narrative context, cross-model findings, and an adversarial critique of our own analysis (near the end of the document)- Members-only sections (render as login gates for anonymous readers):
price-history,income-trend,key-metrics,financials(statement tables),insider-trading. The analysis above is public; the raw data tables require a free account.
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any ticker resolves at delvantic.com/stock/TICKER ·
raw inputs are public-company filings and market data (via licensed data feeds);
every model, score, lens read, and prediction on this page is Delvantic's own analysis.
Relx PLC
RELX NYSERelx PLC Sponsored ADR represents shares of Relx PLC, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business users across various industries. The American Depositary Receipt (ADR) format allows US investors to hold and trade Relx shares in the US market, simplifying access to the company's stock without dealing with international exchanges. Relx PLC operates through four primary segments: Scientific, Technical & Medical; Risk & Business Analytics; Legal; and Exhibitions. These sectors cater to the needs of customers in scientific research, risk management, legal services, and the exhibitions industry, respectively. Relx PLC leverages advanced databases, data analytics, and technology to deliver critical information and workflow solutions. As a leader in enhancing productivity and improving decision-making, Relx plays a vital role in the knowledge economy, supporting businesses and professionals in making informed decisions. By offering expertise and proprietary data sets, Relx PLC maintains significant importance in its market, providing tools and insights that drive efficiency and innovation across its domains.
Price Overview
Price History (1 Year)
Revenue & Net Income Trend
This company does not file structured financial statements with the U.S. SEC, so quarterly figures aren't available from our filings-based data engine. Annual figures shown here come from the sources that do cover it.
| Period | Revenue | Net Income | Net Margin | YoY/QoQ |
|---|
Key Metrics
EPS (Diluted): 1.51
Total Equity: $3.23B
Shares: 1,843,500,000
Total Debt: $0.00
Cash: $176.91M
EBITDA: $5.10B
Total Debt: $0.00
Cash: $176.91M
Revenue: $12.95B
Revenue: $12.95B
Revenue: $12.95B
Total Equity: $3.23B
Tax Rate: 24.4%
Equity: $3.23B
Total Debt: $0.00
Cash: $176.91M
Current Liabilities: $8.10B
Long-Term Debt: $0.00
Total Debt: $0.00
Total Equity: $3.23B
Shares: 1,843,500,000
Shares: 1,843,500,000
CapEx: -$28.36M
Shares: 1,843,500,000
Stock Price: $35.45
Net Income: $2.79B
Industry Benchmarks
Income Statement (Annual)
Last updated: Aug 11, 2026 12:38pm (14d ago)| Metric | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $9.8B | $11.6B | $12.4B | $12.7B | $13.0B |
| Cost of Revenue | $3.5B | $4.1B | $4.3B | $4.5B | $4.4B |
| Gross Profit | $6.3B | $7.4B | $8.0B | $8.3B | $8.6B |
| Operating Expenses | $3.8B | $4.3B | $4.4B | $4.4B | $4.5B |
| Operating Income | $2.5B | $3.1B | $3.6B | $3.9B | $4.1B |
| Net Income | $2.0B | $2.2B | $2.4B | $2.6B | $2.8B |
| EBITDA | $3.6B | $4.2B | $4.7B | $4.9B | $5.1B |
| EPS | $1.03 | $1.15 | $1.27 | $1.40 | $1.52 |
| EPS (Diluted) | $1.02 | $1.14 | $1.26 | $1.39 | $1.51 |
Balance Sheet (Annual)
Last updated: Aug 11, 2026 12:38pm (14d ago)| Metric | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & Equivalents | $152.6M | $451.0M | $209.3M | $160.7M | $176.9M |
| Total Current Assets | $3.2B | $4.1B | $3.9B | $4.0B | $4.0B |
| Total Assets | $18.7B | $21.4B | $20.1B | $20.4B | $19.9B |
| Current Liabilities | $5.1B | $7.0B | $7.4B | $7.7B | $8.1B |
| Long-Term Debt | — | — | — | — | — |
| Total Liabilities | $14.4B | $16.3B | $15.5B | $15.7B | $16.7B |
| Total Equity | $4.4B | $5.1B | $4.6B | $4.7B | $3.2B |
| Retained Earnings | — | — | — | — | — |
Cash Flow (Annual)
Last updated: Aug 11, 2026 12:38pm (14d ago)| Metric | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash Flow | $2.7B | $3.2B | $3.3B | $3.5B | $3.8B |
| Capital Expenditure | -$37.8M | -$48.6M | -$40.5M | -$27.0M | -$28.4M |
| Free Cash Flow | $2.7B | $3.2B | $3.3B | $3.5B | $3.8B |
| Acquisitions (net) | -$343.0M | -$532.1M | -$167.5M | -$229.6M | -$351.1M |
| Net Debt Issued / (Repaid) | -$582.0M | — | — | — | — |
| Dividends Paid | -$1.3B | -$1.3B | -$1.4B | -$1.5B | -$1.6B |
| Stock Buybacks | — | — | — | — | — |
| Net Change in Cash | $35.1M | $280.9M | -$228.2M | -$43.2M | $20.3M |
Growth Trends (YoY %)
Last updated: Aug 11, 2026 12:38pm (14d ago)| Metric | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue Growth | +18.1% | +7.1% | +3.0% | +1.7% |
| Gross Profit Growth | +17.6% | +7.9% | +3.2% | +3.6% |
| Operating Income Growth | +23.3% | +15.5% | +6.7% | +5.8% |
| Net Income Growth | +11.1% | +9.0% | +8.6% | +6.8% |
| EBITDA Growth | +16.5% | +11.8% | +4.8% | +3.7% |
Dividend History (Last 20)
Last updated: Aug 11, 2026 12:38pm (14d ago)| Date | Dividend | Declaration | Record | Payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-08-07 | $0.28 | — | — | — |
| 2026-05-08 | $0.66 | — | — | — |
| 2025-08-08 | $0.26 | — | — | — |
| 2025-05-09 | $0.56 | — | — | — |
| 2024-08-02 | $0.23 | — | — | — |
| 2024-05-02 | $0.53 | — | — | — |
| 2023-08-03 | $0.22 | — | — | — |
| 2023-04-27 | $0.47 | — | — | — |
| 2022-08-04 | $0.19 | — | — | — |
| 2022-04-28 | $0.44 | — | — | — |
| 2021-08-05 | $0.20 | — | — | — |
| 2021-04-29 | $0.47 | — | — | — |
| 2020-07-31 | $0.18 | — | — | — |
| 2020-04-24 | $0.40 | — | — | — |
| 2019-08-01 | $0.16 | — | — | — |
| 2019-05-02 | $0.38 | — | — | — |
| 2018-08-02 | $0.16 | — | — | — |
| 2018-04-26 | $0.37 | — | — | — |
| 2017-08-02 | $0.15 | — | — | — |
| 2017-04-26 | $0.33 | — | — | — |
Deep Analysis
Narrative Economics
market-narrative step).
Claude Reading
Starting with the raw numbers: RELX printed $12.95B revenue in 2025 vs $9.78B in 2021 — that's a 7.3% revenue CAGR over four years, not the 2.3% the momentum module reports (that number appears to be pulling from a shorter or mis-scaled window). Operating income went from $2.54B to $4.09B over the same period, a 12.7% CAGR, with operating margin expanding from 26.0% to 31.6% — 560bps of expansion in four years is not "mature earner running out of gas." Net income compounded at 8.8%, FCF at ~$3.80B on $12.95B revenue is a 29.3% FCF/revenue conversion, and capex of $28M on $3.83B OCF is essentially a rounding error — this is closer to a software business than a specialty industrial. ROE at 86% and ROIC at 101% are absurd on their face but consistent with a business that has amortized most of its intangibles and runs on subscription float.
The valuation math: at $35.45 and $2.79B in NI, the P/E is 22.3x on trailing, closer to 20x on forward if earnings grow another 7%. EV/EBITDA at 12.7x for a business converting ~30% of revenue to FCF with 30%+ margin expansion history is not obviously expensive — it's roughly in line with S&P Global (25x P/E), Moody's (37x), and Wolters Kluwer (28x). If anything, RELX trades at a discount to its US-listed peers, which the pre-flight and synthesis models undersell. The $3.23B equity base against $62B market cap (P/B of 20x) is a red herring — this is an intangibles-heavy business where book value is meaningless. Cash of $177M with unreported total debt is the one genuine data gap; I'd want to confirm net debt before underwriting, since RELX historically runs ~$8-10B gross debt.
Where I disagree with the prior models: the synthesis "fair value $33" and thesis-eval score of -8 both feel too bearish for a business showing accelerating operating margin (31.6% is a record) and 7%+ earnings growth with fortress FCF. The AI-disintermediation bear case (weight 78) is the crux — but RELX's LexisNexis and Elsevier products have been "about to be disrupted by AI" for three years running, and 2025 revenue growth suggests the opposite: they're capturing AI monetization via Lexis+ AI and Scopus AI premium tiers. The bear thesis is theoretically sound but empirically not showing up in the numbers yet. Conversely, I'd push back on the bull-case complacency: 1.7% YoY revenue in the most recent period is a real deceleration from the 7%+ multi-year CAGR, and if that's the new run-rate, 22x P/E is stretched. The contrarian read is that both stories are right sequentially — margin expansion masks top-line softening, and when margins plateau (they can't expand forever past ~35%), the multiple compresses.
Committing: I partially dissent from the "fair value" synthesis — I think RELX is slightly undervalued relative to its information-oligopoly peer set (S&P Global, Moody's, MSCI all trade 25-35x), and the $33 composite fair value understates the FCF durability. But I only partially agree with a bullish read because the 1.7% recent YoY is a genuine yellow flag that could validate the bear disintermediation thesis over the next 4-6 quarters. Intrinsic value: $38-42 based on 20x forward earnings of ~$1.55/share ADR-equivalent plus a modest quality premium for the FCF conversion. At $35.45 that's ~10-15% upside plus a 2.6% dividend — decent but not table-pounding. The right posture is a modest overweight vs. index, not a concentrated bet, and the thesis breaks if Q1/Q2 2026 revenue growth stays sub-3% while margin expansion stalls. Watch the Elsevier and Risk segment organic growth disclosures — those are the leading indicators, not the consolidated line. Anomaly to flag: missing debt figure is material for a company this size and needs verification before sizing up.
GPT Reading
What stands out is how much of RELX’s quality is real and how little of it is hidden. This is a genuinely superb business on operating economics: revenue has risen from $9.78B in 2021 to $12.95B in 2025, operating income from $2.54B to $4.09B, and net income from $1.99B to $2.79B. The margin progression is the story: gross margin is now 66.3%, operating margin 31.6%, and net margin 21.5%. Even better, cash conversion is exceptional. On $2.79B of net income, operating cash flow was $3.83B and free cash flow $3.80B, with capex of only $28.4M. That is a near-asset-light tollbooth model, not an industrial in any ordinary sense. If I were judging only the business, I would call it elite: recurring data/workflow revenues, pricing power, and a model that keeps converting incremental revenue into profit. The issue is that the stock price mostly already knows this.
At $35.45 and a $62.1B market cap, investors are paying about 23.4x earnings, 5.0x sales, and 12.7x EV/EBITDA for a company whose latest annual revenue growth was only 1.7% and whose 2021-2025 revenue CAGR is just 2.3% on the provided figures. Earnings and FCF have compounded at 7.7%, but that gap versus revenue is largely margin expansion and operating leverage, which become harder to repeat once operating margin is already above 31%. RELX added only $210M of revenue in 2025, yet the market values the whole business at over $62B. The valuation is not absurd for a data oligopoly, but it is full enough that future returns likely track earnings growth plus the 2.6% dividend, rather than any further rerating. In other words, this looks like a very good company priced like a very good company.
There are also a few data points that make me less willing to pay a premium multiple than the “defensive compounder” label might suggest. Book equity is only $3.23B, so the 20.2x P/B and 86% ROE are not evidence of magical economics so much as a thin equity base; that metric flatters the story. Cash on hand is just $176.9M and the current ratio is 0.49, which is not alarming for a cash generative subscription business but does underscore that this is optimized, not fortress-liquid. More importantly, the reported recent revenue growth of 1.7% is simply not the kind of top-line momentum that should command much forgiveness if AI tools, open-access publishing, or procurement pressure begin chipping away at pricing. A business this mature can still be excellent, but when sales growth slows toward low-single digits, the burden shifts to margin durability. With gross margin already at 66% and FCF essentially equal to OCF because capex is trivial, there are fewer obvious levers left.
The strongest case against my cautious read is straightforward: RELX does not need high revenue growth to justify a premium, because this is exactly the sort of business where stability, retention, and low capital intensity are the product. A 23x P/E on a 21.5% net margin, 31.6% operating margin, and $3.80B of FCF is not expensive if cash flows remain highly predictable and can keep growing mid-single digits through pricing, mix, and buybacks. Net income rose 6.8% in the latest year on just 1.7% revenue growth, suggesting there may still be room for efficiency and mix gains. Compared with lower-quality cyclical industrials, or even many software names with worse margins and weaker cash conversion, RELX’s multiple can look conservative. If this company can reliably compound EPS at 7-9% and distribute another 2-3% annually, paying a low-20s multiple may be perfectly rational. I weigh that case less heavily because those are bond-like equity returns, and at this valuation there is not much cushion if growth slips from “steady” to merely “stagnant.”
What would change my mind is not another year of 2% sales growth and 100 bps of margin expansion; the market already capitalizes that. I would turn more constructive if RELX showed sustained revenue acceleration back toward 5%+ without sacrificing margins, or if operating income grew materially faster than revenue for another two years while keeping FCF around $3.8B-$4.2B and the valuation stayed near current levels. I would turn negative if annual revenue growth remained stuck below 3% while the P/E stayed above 23x, or if any segment disruption showed up in the numbers as flat-to-down revenue alongside margin pressure. For now, the mismatch is not between business quality and stock quality; it is between a business that deserves admiration and a stock that offers only a modest return setup at $35.
Grok Reading
RELX’s numbers describe a high-quality cash machine whose growth engine has clearly downshifted. Revenue crawled from $12.74B to $12.95B in the latest year (+1.7%) and the multi-year revenue CAGR sits at a meager 2.3%, a sharp contrast with the 2021–2022 rebound when sales jumped from $9.78B to $11.55B. Earnings tell a better story—net income rose from $2.61B to $2.79B (+6.8% y/y) and has compounded at 7.7%—because operating margin expanded from roughly 26% in 2021 to 31.6% today and free cash flow conversion is exceptional: $3.80B of FCF on $12.95B of revenue with almost no capex ($28M). Gross margin of 66% and net margin of 21.5% confirm a structurally attractive information-services model. The balance sheet is thin on cash ($177M) against equity of only $3.23B, which, together with an 86% ROE and 101% ROIC, signals aggressive capital return rather than a fortress liquidity position. At $35.45 the stock trades at 23.4× earnings, 5.0× sales and 12.7× EV/EBITDA—reasonable for a durable oligopoly, rich for a 2% top-line grower.
What stands out is the divergence between the “mature earner” classification and the decelerating organic trajectory. Margin expansion and FCF quality have carried the equity story; revenue has not. The 2.6% dividend yield and ~58% payout are sustainable given cash generation, but they do not compensate for the fact that investors are paying a quality-compounder multiple for what is increasingly a low-single-digit growth profile. The valuation synthesis that pins fair value near $34–35 is directionally correct: the market is not wildly mispricing the cash flows, yet it is embedding permanence of both the moat and the margin runway that recent revenue trends do not fully underwrite.
The strongest case against a cautious stance is that RELX still owns workflow-critical data in legal, scientific and risk markets where switching costs remain high and retention is sticky. Bulls will correctly note that earnings and FCF have grown nearly 8% annually even as revenue slowed, that EV/EBITDA of 12.7× is hardly frothy versus other B2B data oligopolies, and that the business requires almost no reinvestment to throw off nearly $4B of free cash. They will also argue the AI-disruption narrative is overstated because RELX itself is embedding analytics and that the “boring compounder” framing has historically been rewarded. I weigh those points seriously, but the 1.7% revenue print and the explicit thesis-score tilt toward AI disintermediation and multiple compression keep me from treating the stock as a bargain; durability of margins is already in the price, acceleration is not.
I would reverse to a clear undervalued call if revenue growth re-accelerates sustainably above 5% with stable or rising margins, or if the multiple compresses toward 18–19× earnings while FCF holds near $3.8B+. Conversely, two consecutive years of sub-1% organic growth or visible AI-driven churn in legal/scientific subscriptions would push me firmly into overvalued territory.
Big-3 Panel — where each AI stands
Advanced Analysis Forensic deep-dive · separate lenses
The financial trajectory is remarkably clean and monotonic. Revenue climbed from 9.78B in 2021 to 12.95B in 2025, gross margin expanded from 64.6% to 66.3%, and operating margin marched from 26.0% to 31.6% - roughly 560bps of operating leverage over four years with no reversal in any year. Net income grew from 1.99B to 2.79B and FCF from 2.68B to 3.80B, with OCF/NI at 1.39x and accruals at -4.6% of assets, meaning reported earnings are more than fully backed by cash.',' Capital discipline is equally strong: diluted shares fell from 1.94B to 1.84B (a -1.3% CAGR), SBC is a trivial 0.7% of revenue, and the company is a net buyer of its own stock. Earnings-quality mechanicals (Beneish -2.78, Altman Z 3.31) show no manipulation flags. Liquid cash is thin at 176.9M (0.3% of market cap) but with 3.80B of annual FCF and no signs of stress, the balance sheet is self-funding by a wide margin - a mature, data/analytics-driven earner behaving exactly as its classification suggests.
Verify before trusting this (5)
- Gross debt, maturity schedule, and interest coverage (only net cash shown; RELX historically carries meaningful debt)
- Organic vs acquired revenue growth by segment (Risk, STM, Legal, Exhibitions) to confirm the margin expansion is organic
- Pension and lease obligations that may sit outside the headline liquidity figure
- Whether the 2025 revenue deceleration to ~1.6% reflects FX, Exhibitions timing, or genuine slowing in core segments
- Capitalized content/software costs and their trend vs reported FCF
The composite FV of $33.00 and signal-adjusted FV of $34.86 both bracket the current $35.37 price, implying roughly -1% to -7% from deserved value. The DCF at $35.11 essentially matches the tape, the anchored P/E stretches to $41.55 (about 17% upside) and the EPV floor sits at $20.21 (about 43% downside) - a wide but sensible range for a compounder. Averaging with a quality tilt lands you within a couple of dollars of spot. There is no gap to exploit here. What is priced in: continued mid-single-digit organic growth, ongoing margin expansion, buybacks, and successful monetization of AI-augmented workflow products. That is exactly the bull case, and it is already in the multiple. For this to be genuinely cheap you would need the anchored-PE outcome to be the base case, which requires the growth reacceleration story to actually show up rather than the sub-2% top line seen recently. High earnings quality (score 3) means no haircut is warranted, but it also means there is no hidden value being missed - the reported numbers are the numbers, and they support roughly today's price.
Verify before trusting this (4)
- Organic revenue growth trajectory in the next print - is the sub-2% a blip or a trend?
- AI product monetization detail in Legal and Risk segments - pricing power or margin drag?
- Buyback pace and capital return guidance
- Open-access exposure in the Scientific/STM segment and any pricing headwinds
RELX sits in a strange sentiment pocket: the tape is mildly risk-on (regime +47) but with beta 0.26 almost none of that lift transmits to this name. It is a defensive, steady-compounder archetype trading almost exactly on fundamentals (+1.5% to DCF), meaning there is no narrative froth to unwind and no story deficit to punish. Higher rates and a 26x market PE are the one real crosswind, since bond-proxy compounders on premium multiples de-rate at the margin when the 10y sits at 4.72%. That is a real but ordinary press, not a decisive force. The active narrative is minimal-intensity and durable: the bull case (workflow monopolies in legal, scientific, risk) is well-worn and consensus, while the bear case (AI disruption of legal research and scientific publishing) is a slow-burn thesis that has not caught fire in the tape. Analyst tone on RELX has generally stayed constructive, and there is no visible catalyst pushing sentiment either way. Momentum is steady-positive but muted, matching the story. Net: forces roughly offset. This is a name where sentiment is doing very little work in either direction, and the price will move on execution and rate path more than on narrative pressure.
Verify before trusting this (4)
- Any concrete AI-competitor win in legal research (e.g., Harvey, vLex) that would harden the disruption narrative
- 10y yield trajectory - a move back toward 4.2% would meaningfully lift bond-proxy compounders
- Analyst target revisions post next earnings - watch for tone shift on LexisNexis growth
- Sector rotation out of defensives into cyclicals if risk-on regime strengthens
This lens hasn't been run for this ticker yet.
When we made this prediction on Aug 12, 2026, RELX was $35.37. We expect it to be $37.20 by Feb 2027, and we consider it great value under $29.00. This is an early model (v0.6.0) — the direction is more reliable than the exact price. Made Aug 12, 2026.
Blue is our prediction, starting the day we made it. Grey is a slower route to the same place — the same destination, taking longer. Black is the actual price, so you can see how we are doing.
Post-Report Due Diligence NOTES
Evidence for a closer look, not a verdict — no score or designation on this page has been changed by it. Items marked material are ones where a conclusion above moves to the other side of the price.
trailing_eps
flips down 25%
adjusted_pe
flips down 25%