Rheinmetall (RHM) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 sales rose 36% YoY to €3.149bn; adjusted operating result increased 62% to €553m, with a 17.5% margin, up 2.7pp.

• Nine-month sales increased 38.3% to €8.376bn and operating result reached €1.339bn, up 68.5%.

• Backlog reached €78.012bn at September-end, up 38% YoY; fixed orders accounted for 70%, versus 58% a year earlier.

• FY2026 sales and margin guidance were lowered after delays to the Arminius project and customer acceptance of produced artillery ammunition lots.

Financial highlights

• Q3 reported EBIT was €515m versus €294m; earnings after taxes were €347m versus €202m, and basic EPS was €6.36 versus €3.33.

• Q3 operating free cash flow was -€82m, improving €85m YoY; it would have been positive had Romanian package prepayments received in early October arrived by quarter-end.

• Working capital was nearly €2.2bn at Q3-end, mainly reflecting Weapon and Ammunition and Air Defence; a reversal was expected in Q4.

• Q3 CapEx was 7.1% of sales, down 3.5pp YoY; quarterly spend was at the prior-year level in absolute terms.

• Nominations were €2.893bn in Q3, down 13% YoY; nine-month nominations reached €19.131bn, up 19.5%.

Outlook and guidance

• FY2026 sales guidance was reduced from €13.7bn–€14.2bn to ~€13.2bn; operating margin guidance fell from ~19% to ~18.5%.

• FY2026 operating free cash flow is expected to be positive, with cash conversion above 0%; prior guidance was a conversion rate above 40%.

• Full-year CapEx remains above €1bn; guidance excludes Arminius prepayments, while Arminius sales contributions and advance payments shift to FY2027.

• Arminius contract signing is expected in Q1 2027 after customer price audits; the €100bn year-end backlog target is unlikely without a 2026 signing.

• 2027 and longer-term guidance, including growth targets and supporting milestones, is to be addressed at the Capital Markets Day.