Shares of Orange (EU:ORA) moved higher on Thursday after the French telecom operator upgraded its full-year earnings guidance and delivered first-quarter results that exceeded expectations.
The company now expects earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization after leases—a key measure of performance in the telecom sector—to increase by more than 3% this year. Previously, Orange had projected growth of around 3%.
First-quarter revenue was supported by strong momentum in the Middle East and Africa, along with stable contributions from its core European markets. Group revenue rose 3.5% year-on-year to €10.1 billion.
In France, its largest market, revenue increased 2.3% to €4.4 billion, driven by the addition of 54,000 fixed broadband customers and 40,000 mobile users. The company continues to phase out its legacy copper network and is progressing with the shutdown of its 2G infrastructure in the country.
Orange Cyberdefense, the group’s cybersecurity arm seen as a key growth driver, recorded a 9.2% increase in revenue.
Core earnings after leases rose 6.6% to €2.60 billion, surpassing analyst expectations of €2.58 billion. Capital expenditure for the quarter totaled €1.54 billion, broadly in line with forecasts.
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