M&G Shares Hit Fresh High as £760m Smiths Group Pension Deal Completes

M&G shares hit a fresh 52-week high on Wednesday after the insurer completed a bulk annuity deal with Smiths Group’s pension scheme.

M&G plc (LSE:MNG) shares climbed to a fresh 52-week high on Wednesday, extending a strong run in 2026, after the asset manager and insurer completed a £760 million bulk purchase annuity transaction with the pension scheme of FTSE 100 engineering group Smiths Group.

Shares in M&G are trading at around 355p on Wednesday morning, up slightly on the day and above Tuesday’s close of 354p after touching an intraday high of 355.5p, a fresh 52-week high. The stock is up about 24% since the start of the year and has risen from a 52-week low near 247p touched in September 2025. Market capitalisation stands at about £8.4 billion.

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Smiths Group’s fifth and final buy-in

M&G said on Tuesday it had completed the transaction with the Smiths Industries Pension Scheme, sponsored by Smiths Group, securing the benefits of more than 10,000 members and their dependants. It is the scheme’s fifth and final buy-in, following four earlier pensioner buy-ins with two other insurers, and now covers all remaining pensioner and deferred members, according to M&G’s announcement.

Rosie Fantom, M&G’s Head of Bulk Annuity Origination and Execution, said the deal “highlights the strength of our proposition and our ability to support schemes of varying size and complexity, with a focus on delivering tailored solutions, excellent administration and a positive member experience.” M&G, a founding member of the bulk annuity market with more than 25 years in the sector, is targeting £3 billion to £4 billion of annual BPA sales by 2027, building on the recent launch of its BPA Plus proposition.

The Smiths deal is the latest in a run of bulk annuity wins for M&G’s pension risk transfer arm: the insurer completed £1.5 billion of BPA volumes in 2025 and struck a £270 million buy-in with the Trinity Retirement Benefit Scheme in February, according to Professional Pensions and Investment & Pensions Europe. The wider UK bulk annuity market has also been buoyant, with insurers writing a record £38.2 billion across 367 buy-ins in 2025, per IPE. M&G shares have risen steadily through 2026, supported by the firm’s dividend focus, capital returns and a string of analyst target upgrades.

Analysts are broadly positive on M&G, though views diverge. Morgan Stanley raised its price target to 310p from 280p and Citi lifted its target to 295p from 288p, according to Simply Wall St. Goldman Sachs, however, downgraded the stock, underlining a split in sentiment even as the shares extend their advance.

The pension risk transfer market remains a growth priority for M&G alongside its core asset management and savings business. With shares at fresh highs and a dividend yield near 6%, the next test will be whether the group’s upcoming trading update can sustain the momentum built through 2026.