Earnings per share

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2025

Note 31: Earnings per share


	2025 £m	2024 £m	2023 £m
Profit attributable to ordinary shareholders – basic and diluted	4,196	3,923	4,933


	2025 million	2024 million	2023 million
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue – basic	59,790	62,413	64,953
Adjustment for share options and awards	723	661	807
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue – diluted	60,513	63,074	65,760

Basic earnings per share	7.0p	6.3p	7.6p
Diluted earnings per share	6.9p	6.2p	7.5p

Note 31: Earnings per share continued

Basic earnings per share are calculated by dividing the net profit attributable to equity shareholders by the weighted average number of

ordinary shares in issue during the year, which has been calculated after deducting 105 million (2024: 71 million; 2023: 180 million) ordinary

shares representing the Group’s holdings of own shares in respect of employee share schemes.

For the calculation of diluted earnings per share the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue is adjusted to assume conversion

of all dilutive potential ordinary shares that arise in respect of share options and awards granted to employees. The number of shares that

could have been acquired at the annual average price of the Company’s shares based on the monetary value of the subscription rights

attached to outstanding share options and awards is determined. This is deducted from the number of shares issuable under such options

and awards to leave a residual bonus amount of shares which are added to the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue, but no

adjustment is made to the profit attributable to equity shareholders.

There were 1 million anti-dilutive share options and awards excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per share (2024: 16 million;

2023: 41 million).