Securitas posts third-quarter sales of SEK 38.566 billion, beating expectations
Key Facts
Securitas reported total sales of SEK 38,566 million in the third quarter of 2026, compared with SEK 38,521 million a year earlier, beating the FactSet estimate of SEK 38,320 million. Operating income before amortization was SEK 3,161 million, versus SEK 3,107 million in the year-earlier period, in line with analyst estimates, according to a Finwire report via MarketScreener. Organic growth was weaker than nominal revenue growth: the company reported organic growth of 0%, compared with 3% a year earlier. Excluding the government SCIS business being wound down, adjusted organic growth was 3%, compared with 4% in the third quarter of 2025. The company said it expects to exit the remaining contracts in this business by the end of October 2026.
Operating margins moved in opposite directions depending on the measure used. The adjusted margin was 8.2%, down from 8.3% a year earlier, while the reported operating margin rose to 8.2% from 8.1%. Reported earnings per share increased to SEK 3.68 from SEK 1.09, but earnings per share before items affecting comparability fell to SEK 3.28 from SEK 3.34. Management said airport security in Europe reduced the group’s adjusted operating margin by 0.2 percentage points in the quarter. By contrast, it said North America continued to perform well, with its technology and guarding units delivering strong growth. The figures reflect a divergence between an improvement in reported profit and broadly stable adjusted operating profitability, with specific pressure from European airport operations.
Growth in technology and solutions was one source of operational support, with sales in this business rising 6% during the quarter. Its share of group sales increased to 35%, compared with 33% a year earlier, while installation orders reached record levels in North America and Iberia. The company said lower activity in airport operations weighed on organic growth in Europe, while its technology and guarding units in North America delivered strong growth. In its quarterly report, management said some markets and customer segments remained cautious, with more selective purchasing and longer decision cycles. The company described organic sales growth in its second-quarter report as unsatisfactory, despite an improvement in the adjusted margin at the time. These developments place the third-quarter figures in a period when technology expansion is coinciding with weak demand in some businesses and markets.
Free cash flow was SEK 1,992 million in the third quarter, according to company data and Finwire’s report, while management said cash generation remained good. The available report did not provide a documented basis for comparing the figure with analyst consensus, so the company kept the focus on its stated annual cash flow target of between 80% and 90% of operating income before amortization. On leverage, net debt to EBITDA fell to 2.1 from 2.2 a year earlier. That is below the company’s target ceiling of less than 2.5 times. Its long-term ambitions also include average annual earnings-per-share growth of 10% over the business cycle and an operating margin above 10% over the long term. Management said it remained well positioned to meet its full-year cash flow target.
Ahead of the results announcement, Securitas shares closed at SEK 164.80 on October 22, down 0.78% during the session, according to MarketScreener data. Investors’ next focus was the results presentation and question-and-answer session with the chief executive and chief financial officer on October 23, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. Central European Summer Time. In the near-term operating outlook, the company set the end of October as its target for exiting the remaining contracts in the government SCIS business. That exit is directly linked to the gap between reported organic growth of 0% and adjusted growth of 3%, as the adjusted measure excluded the business being wound down. The annual cash flow target remains 80% to 90% of operating income before amortization, management reiterated in the report.