Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize (AD) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 net sales rose 1.9% to €23.1bn at constant exchange rates; comparable sales excluding gasoline grew 1.2%, with positive volume growth in both regions.

• Value, quality and convenience investments supported market-share gains and a 4.1% underlying operating margin; diluted underlying EPS was €0.69, up 1.4% at constant rates.

• An October cybersecurity incident disrupted online operations in the Benelux and U.S. and parts of the Benelux supply chain; recovery is underway and the FY26 outlook was lowered.

Financial highlights

• Underlying operating income was €946m, up 0.4% at constant rates; underlying income from continuing operations was €603m, down 1.9%.

• IFRS operating income was €976m, up 8.1% at actual rates; income from continuing operations was €625m, up 7.0%.

• Q3 free cash flow was €445m versus €389m a year earlier; 9M free cash flow was €747m, down 29.0% at constant rates.

• Online sales were €2.6bn, up 8.2% at constant rates; reported online sales were €2.7bn, up 7.3% at actual rates.

• IFRS operating income exceeded underlying operating income by €30m, primarily due to a U.S. pension settlement gain.

Outlook and guidance

• FY26 underlying operating margin is expected to approach 4.0%; diluted underlying EPS growth at constant rates is forecast in the low single digits, down from prior mid-to-high single-digit guidance.

• FY26 free cash flow is expected to be ~€2.1bn, versus at least €2.3bn previously; the estimate includes the cyber incident and Serbian supplier payment regulations.

• The cyber incident is estimated to reduce Q4 net sales by €200m–€250m and underlying and IFRS operating income by €75m–€100m; response and remediation costs should marginally affect FY26 IFRS operating income.

• FY26 dividend per share growth is targeted at a mid-single-digit rate; gross capital expenditures are expected to be ~€2.7bn and customer savings at least €1.25bn.

• The 53rd week is expected to add 1.5%–2% to FY net sales and 2%–3% to underlying income from continuing operations, with no significant underlying margin impact.