Saab operating profit rises to 1,945 million kronor as orders surge
Key Facts
Sweden's Saab reported operating profit of 1,945 million Swedish kronor in the third quarter of 2026, according to its earnings statement released on October 23, alongside higher sales and orders. That compares with operating profit of 1,374 million kronor in the third quarter of 2025, according to the group's year-on-year comparison. The operating margin improved to 9.5%, from 8.7% in the corresponding period, as sales growth was accompanied by higher operating profitability. Saab attributed the increase in operating profit to contributions from its Surveillance and Aeronautics divisions, according to its interim report on the quarter. Net profit rose to 1,432 million kronor, compared with 975 million kronor a year earlier. Earnings per share were 2.57 Swedish kronor, against 1.77 kronor in the corresponding quarter last year. Quarterly operating cash flow rose to 6,785 million kronor, from 142 million kronor in the same period of 2025.
Saab's third-quarter sales totalled 20,553 million Swedish kronor, according to the earnings statement, as its surveillance and naval systems businesses expanded during the period. The group reported sales of 15,871 million kronor in the third quarter of 2025, the comparison period for the current results. Organic sales growth reached 30.6%, compared with 18.3% in the corresponding quarter, reflecting an acceleration in organic growth year on year. By business segment, Surveillance sales rose 65%, which the company attributed to increased radar deliveries and strong project execution. Naval Systems sales also grew 41% during the quarter, supported by progress on projects and the start of the Polish submarine programme, according to the interim report.
The group's third-quarter order intake rose to 65,825 million Swedish kronor, according to Saab's statement. That compares with orders of 20,861 million kronor in the same period of 2025, with large contracts driving quarterly order growth. The company said in its interim report that large orders increased 526% year on year in the third quarter of 2026. The book-to-bill ratio reached "3.2 times", according to the report, as incoming contracts exceeded sales recorded during the period. The group's order backlog reached 364,223 million Swedish kronor at the end of September 2026, according to figures Saab released with its results.
As its contract portfolio expanded, international markets' share of the order backlog rose to 79% at the end of September 2026, from 73% at the end of September 2025. Among the contracts Saab announced in July 2026 was an order for "two GlobalEye aircraft from a country in the Middle East", according to the company's statement on the deal. Saab did not identify the purchasing country, while putting the value of the Middle Eastern order at 10.1 billion Swedish kronor in the same statement. Internally funded research and development spending amounted to about 3.7 billion Swedish kronor, according to the interim report. That spending covers the first nine months of 2026, from January to September, while the quarterly profit and sales figures relate to the third quarter.
Among contracts with future deliveries, Saab announced in July 2026 a contract to equip the German Navy's new frigates, worth about 8.7 billion Swedish kronor. The German contract includes an option to equip additional frigates, according to the company's statement on the order, alongside work to equip the frigates covered by the contract. Saab set the period between 2029 and 2032 for delivery of its equipment to the German company contracting with it, according to the announced schedule for the deal. For the order for two GlobalEye aircraft for the Middle Eastern customer, the group said deliveries would take place in 2030. Ahead of those delivery dates, the next scheduled results announcement is February 5, 2027, the date Saab set for publishing its full-year results in its investor calendar.