Alphen aan den Rijn, May 6, 2026, Wolters Kluwer, a global leader in professional information solutions, software and services, today releases its first-quarter 2026 trading update.
Highlights
Full-year 2026 guidance for the group reiterated.
First-quarter revenues up 4% in constant currencies and up 5% organically.
Recurring revenues (85% of total) up 7% organically; non-recurring revenues (15% of total) down 5%.
Cloud software revenues (23% of total) up 14% organically.
Print revenues (4% of total) reduced organic growth by 130 basis points.
First-quarter adjusted operating profit up 11% in constant currencies.
Product development and other investments expected to be second-half-weighted.
First-quarter adjusted free cash flow up 15% in constant currencies.
Favorable timing of working capital movements expected to reverse in coming quarters.
Rolling 12-months' net-debt-to-EBITDA was 1.9x as of March 31, 2026.
Progress on 2026 buyback: €164 million of intended share buyback of up to €500 million completed in the year through May 4, 2026.
Stacey Caywood, CEO and Chair of the Executive Board, commented: "We've had a solid start to the year, in line with our expectations. I am confident in reiterating our full‑year guidance. Recurring revenues sustained 7% growth, driven by advanced digital information solutions and cloud software. In Health, more than half of our U.S. Enterprise customers have now signed up to adopt UpToDate Expert AI. In Tax & Accounting, the new CCH Axcess agentic AI modules are seeing good early adoption by firms. Across the group, we have accelerated the pace of AI innovation, expanded partnerships, and are advancing commercial capabilities. We continue to leverage our AI-enablement platform and expert-in-the-loop approach to deliver high quality, trustworthy and secure AI and agentic solutions for our customers."
First-quarter 2026 developments
First-quarter revenues declined 3% in reporting currency, reflecting a 7% negative impact from currency due to the depreciation of the U.S. dollar against the euro (average €/$ 1.17 in 1Q 2026 vs. €/$ 1.05 in 1Q 2025). Excluding the effect of currency, revenues increased 4%, partly reflecting the impact of net divestitures (mainly FRR). Organic growth was 5%, in line with the comparable period (1Q 2025: 5%). Subscription and other recurring revenues (85% of total revenues) sustained robust 7% organic growth (1Q 2025: 7%). Non-recurring revenues declined 5% organically (1Q 2025: 2% organic decline) due to weaker trends in print books, on-premise licenses, and professional implementation services.
Health revenues increased 5% in constant currencies. Organic growth was 5% (1Q 2025: 4%).
Clinical Solutions delivered 6% organic growth (1Q 2025: 5%), reflecting good renewal rates globally as well as favorable timing of partnership revenues. As of April 30, more than half of our U.S. Enterprise Edition1 customers (representing approximately 2,000 hospitals) have signed up to adopt the Expert AI version of UpToDate Enterprise and we are on track to reach our goal of 70% by mid-year. During the quarter, the integration of UpToDate with the Abridge AI scribe was activated and work began on integration with Microsoft Dragon Copilot.
Learning, Research & Practice achieved 3% organic growth (1Q 2025: 2%). Medical research journals saw strong growth in open access fees in the quarter. The trend in print books was weaker in the quarter, partly reflecting timing.
Tax & Accounting revenues increased 4% in constant currencies. Organic growth was 4% (1Q 2025: 5%), reflecting the timing of North American print publications. Recurring revenues sustained robust 7% organic growth (1Q 2025: 7%), driven by cloud solutions.
Tax & Accounting North America recorded 2% organic growth (1Q 2025: 5%) as sustained organic growth in recurring revenues was partly offset by a decline in print books. As we enter our main selling season, we already have over 150 national and regional accounting firms using the recently launched CCH Axcess agentic AI modules, Intelligence and Client Collaboration.
Tax & Accounting Europe delivered 8% organic growth (1Q 2025: 7%), supported by continued double-digit organic growth in cloud software solutions. Cloud-based automation and data exchange solutions (CodaBox, ClearFacts, Kyte, and Flowin) saw strong organic growth.
Financial & Corporate Compliance revenues decreased 2% in constant currencies, reflecting the divestment of the Finance, Risk & Regulatory Reporting unit (FRR) on December 1, 2025. Organic growth was 5% (1Q 2025: 3%). Transactional revenues rose 3% organically (1Q 2025: 4%).
Legal Services delivered 6% organic growth (1Q 2025: 6%), driven by subscription renewals and upselling of services including business licenses, alongside muted transactional revenues. Transactional revenues reflect the expected ramp-down of beneficial ownership (BOI) activity related to the suspension of enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) in March 2025.
Financial Services delivered 4% organic growth (1Q 2025: 0%), driven by growth in recurring revenues from lending compliance solutions, combined with a modest improvement in lien and other transactional revenues.
Legal & Regulatory revenues grew 10% in constant currencies, partly due to the acquisitions of Brightflag, ...
