IG Group Initiates Second Phase Of £150 Million Share Buyback

IG Group Holdings Plc has announced the launch of the second phase of its £150 million share buyback plan. According to the company, this new phase is now underway and will involve repurchasing up to £75 million worth of shares.

UBS AG London Branch has been tasked with managing this phase, which is expected to continue until January 31, 2025.

IG Group Seeks To Lower Share Capital And Address Fiscal Year Challenges

The second part of the plan comes after the first part was finished in August, with Morgan Stanley & Co. International Plc handling it. IG Group said the first part involved buying back £75 million worth of shares.

Shareholders agreed to the buyback plan during the company’s meeting on September 18, 2024. The plan lets IG Group buy up to 36,934,031 shares in this phase.

IG Group explained that the main aim of the buyback is to lower the company’s share capital. All the shares bought will be kept in treasury, which could change the number of shares the company has and affect earnings per share.

This new step comes as IG Group faces challenges after its fiscal year 2024 results. The company shared those pre-tax profits went down by 11%, reaching £400.8 million, and total revenue dropped by 3%, falling to £987.3 million.

Breon Corcoran, the Chief Executive Officer of IG Group, said he knows the company is facing problems and has found areas that need change. He also said there is a lot of work to do to help IG Group move forward and tackle the challenges the team is facing.

IG Group Seeks To Manage Its Capital Structure Effectively

Even with the challenges, IG Group shared some good news for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, which lasted from June to August. The company said total revenue for the quarter went up to £278.9 million, a 15% rise compared to the year before. This growth happened because each client brought in more money and there was more activity in the markets during early August.

IG Group also said there was a 14% increase in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives, which made £208.1 million during the quarter. Revenue from exchange-traded derivatives went up by 20%, reaching £59.6 million. The rest of the income, which was £11.2 million, came from stock trading and investments.

IG Group also announced it closed DailyFX, a news and forex analysis platform they used to run. Now, people who visit the DailyFX website are sent to IG Group’s main website. The company also started a new morning show called “Trade Live with IG,” which is for traders.

The second phase of the share buyback plan shows IG Group is working to manage its money better and handle the difficulties in the current market.