2026 Half-Year Highlights:
H1 2026 Group financial performance broadly in line with expectations
Total Group revenue was up 2%, with external Group revenue up 1% year-on-year. Group adjusted EBITA was flat year-on-year, with growth in Total Advertising Revenue (TAR) offset by the expected decline in ITV Studios adjusted EBITA. This reflects the weighting of large productions, and high-margin licensing deals within Global Partnerships, toward the second half of 2026, as previously guided. Group adjusted EPS was up 22% to 2.2p. Statutory profit before tax was up 16% to £78m, and statutory EPS was up 25% to 1.5p.
ITV Studios delivered total revenue growth of 2%, driven by a 9% increase in internal revenue and strong growth in distribution revenues as we continue to successfully monetise our unique and valuable content library. External revenue declined 1% driven by the phasing of deliveries.
ITV Studios' adjusted EBITA declined by 9%, with an adjusted EBITA margin of 10.6%. The decline in EBITA reflects the revenue mix and the profit impact of lower revenue from the previously announced scheduling changes to the Soaps and Daytime production.
Media & Entertainment (M&E) delivered a good first-half performance, with total revenue up 2%. H1 TAR increased by 3%, with Q2 up 8% year-on-year. This was driven by the Men’s Football World Cup, which attracted strong advertising and sponsorship demand from both UK and global brands across many advertising categories, and supercharged engagement on ITVX, which delivered record H1 viewing, up 27%, with digital advertising revenue up 13% year-on-year.
We delivered good growth in M&E despite the impact of less healthy food (LHF) regulations which were introduced in October 2025. We continue to work closely with advertisers to mitigate the impact. In H1 2026 we estimate a £20 million impact on TAR from the regulations.
M&E adjusted EBITA grew 37% with the growth in TAR, partially offset by the expected increase in marketing costs for ITV’s new brand campaign, and to support the launch of new formats and dramas in H1.
In total across the Group, we achieved £13 million of permanent non-content cost savings in H1 which helped fund investments and offset inflation. We are on track to deliver £20 million of non-content cost savings across the full year.
Reflecting our confidence in the business and our commitment to attractive shareholder returns, the Board has declared an interim dividend of 1.7p, a total of around £60 million, unchanged on prior year. In addition, we are today announcing a £100 million share buyback. This represents an early return of part of the previously announced £950 million net cash return expected on completion of the sale of M&E. We expect to commence the buyback shortly and anticipate completion within 9-12 months.
