Grenke (GLJ) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q1 2026 was marked by a challenging macroeconomic and geopolitical environment, with elevated insolvencies and investment reluctance among SMEs, especially in Europe.

• Group earnings after taxes rose 52.4% to EUR 15.5 million, with return on equity after taxes improving to 4.4% from 3.1% a year earlier.

• Strategic focus on profitability, risk management, and sustainable growth led to improved cost-income ratio and operating income growth.

• Leasing new business grew 4.2% year-over-year to EUR 786.4 million, mainly driven by Germany, France, and Italy.

• Strong liquidity position supported by a EUR 500 million benchmark bond, EUR 200 million KfW loan, and diversified refinancing mix.

Financial highlights

• Operating income increased by 10.2% to EUR 171 million, with net interest income at EUR 107 million and service business profit at EUR 64 million.

• Cost-income ratio improved to 52.6% from 56.8% in Q1 2025.

• Operating result before settlement of claims and risk provision was EUR 80.9 million, up 20.8% year-over-year.

• Loss rate remained stable at 1.9% in Q1 2026.

• Total assets increased 3.0% to EUR 9.4 billion; equity ratio at 15.2%.

Outlook and guidance

• Annual targets reaffirmed: group earnings of EUR 74–86 million and leasing new business of EUR 3.4–3.6 billion.

• Return on equity (ROE) target of 10% by 2030, with annualized Q1 2026 ROE at 4.4%.

• Loss rate guidance for 2026 remains at 1.6%–1.7%, expecting improvement as lease volume grows.

• CM2 margin target of 16.5% for the year, with Q1 at 16.1%.

• Cost-income ratio expected to remain around 55% for the year.