Author: Fiona Craig

Mondi (LSE:MNDI) reported weaker full-year 2025 earnings as persistent margin pressure and an extended industry downturn weighed on results, even as revenue edged higher and cash generation strengthened.

Group revenue increased 3% year on year to €7.7 billion, helped by improved sales volumes and the impact of the Schumacher acquisition. However, underlying EBITDA declined 5% to €1,001 million, reflecting tougher trading conditions, and the underlying EBITDA margin narrowed to 13.1% from 14.1% the previous year.

Profit before tax fell 29% to €269 million, while basic underlying earnings per share dropped to 56.5 euro cents, compared with 82.7 euro cents in 2024.

Cash generated from operations rose 11% to €1,072 million, supported by effective working capital management. Net debt to underlying EBITDA climbed to 2.6 times from 1.7 times, largely due to investment spending, including the Schumacher deal and major capital expenditure projects.

The board proposed a total ordinary dividend of 28.25 euro cents per share, sharply down from 70.00 euro cents last year, in line with the group’s dividend cover framework.

Chief Executive Andrew King said the company “delivered a resilient full year financial performance” despite a “prolonged cyclical downturn,” pointing to the benefits of its integrated asset base and continued cost control.

Looking ahead, Mondi cautioned that the timing of any recovery in geopolitical and macroeconomic conditions remains uncertain. Paper prices at the start of 2026 are slightly below levels seen in the final quarter of 2025, but the group said it is confident in its ability to manage ongoing challenges through disciplined volume growth, margin focus and cost efficiency measures.

Pernod Ricard SA (EU:RNO) is on track to meet its medium-term cash conversion objective in 2026, a year earlier than originally anticipated, Chief Financial Officer Hélène de Tissot said.

The French spirits group has also scaled back its planned strategic investments for fiscal 2026. Chief Executive Officer Alexandre Ricard stated that spending will now total around €750 million, compared with the €900 million previously projected.

The revised investment plan marks a €150 million reduction versus earlier guidance, a move that could strengthen the company’s cash generation and provide greater flexibility in allocating capital as it prioritises balance sheet improvement.

Shares in Airbus Group (EU:AIR) dropped almost 6% on Thursday after the aircraft manufacturer issued a softer-than-anticipated delivery outlook for 2026 due to engine supply constraints, overshadowing a better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit performance.

For the three months to December 31, Airbus reported earnings per share of €3.27, marking a 7% increase year on year and comfortably ahead of Investing.com forecasts of €2.34.

Quarterly revenue rose 5% to €25.98 billion, although this came in below market expectations of €27.5 billion. By the end of 2025, consolidated order intake reached €123.3 billion, with the total order backlog valued at €619 billion.

Looking ahead, Airbus projected commercial aircraft deliveries of 870 units in 2026, falling short of Bloomberg consensus estimates of around 896 aircraft.

Chief Executive Guillaume Faury said that despite strong worldwide demand for Airbus jets, the company continues to face “significant” supply shortages of Pratt & Whitney engines, produced by a subsidiary of Rtx Corp (NYSE:RTX).

The engine bottleneck has also led Airbus to adjust its production plans. The group now expects monthly output of its narrowbody aircraft to reach between 70 and 75 units by the end of 2027, stabilising at 75 per month thereafter. Previously, Airbus had targeted a rate of 75 aircraft per month in 2027.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Ken Herbert commented that Airbus’ fourth-quarter performance was “overshadowed by soft 2026 guide.”

“We believe investors will view the guide as below expectations, and could put pressure on the stock in the near term. However, we do believe the company’s guide for ~870 aircraft deliveries is appropriately conservative, as we have called out that we expected a sub-900 delivery guide,” he wrote.

Jefferies analyst Chloe Lemarie echoed similar concerns, stating that “FY25 results should allay some fears, notably with a solid FCF performance despite inventory buildup.”

“However, the 2026 guide is weaker than we expected,” she added.

Airbus also proposed a dividend of €3.20 per share for 2025.

Shares in Euronext (EU:ENX) edged lower on Thursday after the exchange operator posted fourth-quarter 2025 figures that fell short of expectations at the reported profit level.

Reported profit before tax (PBT) came in at €213 million, around 5% below market forecasts, according to Barclays. By contrast, adjusted PBT reached €258 million, roughly 3% above consensus, helped by stronger revenues and favourable depreciation and amortisation dynamics.

Quarterly net income totalled €145 million, also about 5% under consensus estimates.

Underlying revenue exceeded expectations by approximately 1%, increasing 11% year on year. However, Barclays noted that the figure included a €4 million fair value adjustment linked to AdminControl contracts following its acquisition. Stripping out this item, revenue would have been broadly aligned with consensus projections.

Adjusted EBITDA rose 9% compared with the prior year and came in about 1% ahead of expectations, while the adjusted EBITDA margin of 60% was in line with market forecasts. Reported earnings per share were €1.42, roughly 5% below the €1.50 consensus, though still 2% higher year on year.

For the full year 2025, Euronext delivered double-digit growth in both revenue and profit, supported by expansion in non-trading activities, resilient market volumes and continued cost control.

Underlying full-year revenue and income advanced 12.1% to €1.82 billion. Non-volume-related businesses accounted for 59% of total revenue and covered 157% of operating expenses, excluding depreciation and amortisation.

Revenue from Securities Services increased 6.9% to €330.7 million, driven by higher custody and settlement activity and growth in assets under custody.

Capital Markets and Data Solutions revenue climbed 12.1% to €669.3 million, while net treasury income surged 22.6% to €69.6 million, reflecting the expansion of clearing operations.

Volume-driven income also strengthened, with fixed income, currencies and commodities markets revenue rising 16.2% to €342.8 million and equity markets revenue up 11.7% to €410 million on robust trading activity.

Adjusted EBITDA for the year grew 13.6% to €1.14 billion, with margin improving to 62.7%. Adjusted net income increased 7.9% to €736.5 million, and adjusted EPS rose 10.3% to €7.27. Reported net income climbed 9.8% to €642.9 million.

Underlying operating expenses, excluding depreciation and amortisation, totalled €680.1 million, reflecting recent acquisitions including Admincontrol and Athex Group.

Looking ahead, the company expects underlying costs in 2026 to reach around €770 million, incorporating integration expenses and investment in growth initiatives. Euronext intends to propose a dividend of €321.5 million, equivalent to 50% of reported net income, marking a 9.8% increase from 2024.

Barclays analysts pointed to the shortfall in reported net income and PBT, along with the 50% payout ratio. “Focus likely on costs & whether guide is conservative – new FY26 guide of €770m is heavier than BARCe (€745m) & unclear what’s in a noisy cons,” they commented.

Chief Executive Stéphane Boujnah said 2025 marked “an excellent start” to the group’s strategic plan, highlighting balanced growth across both trading and non-trading segments.

Jubilee Metals Group (LSE:JLP) delivered a strong operational performance in the first half of FY2026, driven by rising copper output from its Zambian assets despite weather-related disruption and infrastructure challenges. The Roan processing facility achieved its targeted 30,000 tonnes per month feed rate, lifting copper unit production by 172.8% year on year to 1,246 tonnes. Total saleable copper units increased 8.7% to 1,543 tonnes, supported by stable power supply and operational efficiency gains.

At the Molefe Mine, the group mined 181,890 tonnes of copper reef and transported 9,130 tonnes of ore to the Sable Refinery. Jubilee also continued to build strategic stockpiles and advanced a two-phase drilling campaign in partnership with Galileo Resources, aimed at expanding the project’s resource base. Progress was made across the company’s broader three-pillar copper growth strategy, including advancement of the Large Waste Project toward a partnership decision. Jubilee reaffirmed its full-year copper production guidance of 4,500 to 5,100 tonnes and confirmed receipt of a further $10 million linked to the completed disposal of its South African chrome and PGM operations.

While operational momentum in Zambia remains strong, the company’s broader financial profile reflects recent pressure, including weaker revenues, reduced profitability and negative free cash flow. On the technical side, share price performance has been constructive, with bullish indicators such as trading above key moving averages and a positive MACD providing support. Valuation metrics are less definitive due to the absence of meaningful P/E and dividend yield data.

More about Jubilee Metals Group

Jubilee Metals Group is a metals processing specialist with a growing focus on copper production in Zambia, centred on the Roan concentrator, Sable Refinery and Molefe Mine. The group has historically processed chrome and platinum group metals in South Africa and has completed the sale of its South African chrome and PGM operations, while continuing to report output from those assets during the transition period.