Experian was one of the London market's standout performers in October, rising 21.18% over the month as investors rotated towards steady, cash-generative businesses and away from the year's high-flyers. Morningstar's monthly screen of UK dividend stocks put the credit data group second among the month's best performers, with RELX up 19.87% and Sage Group up 19.78% close behind.

The move came in a month when the broader UK market made far smaller headway. Morningstar's UK Index gained 1.41% over the month, while its dividend-focused index rose 5.48%. Experian's shares ended the month at £29.87, giving a forward dividend yield of 1.73% on a trailing 12-month dividend of 52p a share, and Morningstar puts its fair value estimate at £31.50. RELX traded at £29.92 with a 2.3% forward yield and a fair value estimate of £42, while Sage stood at £11.63 with a 1.93% yield.

The pattern points to a taste for certainty. Experian delivered 8% organic revenue growth and 15% growth in benchmark earnings per share in its latest financial year, ended 31 March 2026, which chief executive Brian Cassin called a record year at the upper end of expectations. RELX and Sage, both built on subscription data and software, offer the same kind of recurring revenue that investors have been paying up for as technology valuations elsewhere come under pressure.

Former favourites found life much harder. Rolls-Royce shares have cooled by almost 20% since August, miners such as Rio Tinto have been hit by weak copper and iron-ore sentiment, and HSBC fell after its third-quarter profit failed to impress shareholders. The FTSE 100 slipped 1.1% on 3 November, dragged down in part by the miners. Experian's next results are due on 18 November, when investors will test whether the October enthusiasm was justified. See Morningstar's full October ranking.