Airbus Cuts Adjusted Operating Profit 9%, Sticks to 870-Plane Delivery Target for 2026
Key Facts
Airbus reported a 9% decline in adjusted EBIT in the third quarter of 2026 to 1,768 million euros, compared with 1,942 million in the same period of 2025, while revenue fell 2% to 17,469 million euros from 17,826 million. The company attributed the weaker operating performance to lower commercial aircraft deliveries and a less favorable mix in commercial aircraft and helicopters, as well as costs to integrate former Spirit AeroSystems work packages. Airbus maintained its full-year guidance, placing the burden of meeting its targets on the final quarter of the year. By contrast, quarterly net income rose 20% to 1,344 million euros from 1,116 million, and earnings per share increased to 1.70 euros from 1.41 euros. The divergence between adjusted operating profit and net income highlights the different trajectories of the two measures during the quarter.
Airbus said the quarterly revenue decline mainly reflected lower commercial aircraft delivery volumes, partly offset by a higher contribution from services. In explaining the fall in adjusted EBIT, it said lower deliveries coincided with a less favorable mix in its commercial aircraft and helicopter businesses. It added that integrating former Spirit AeroSystems work packages weighed on the measure, while improved performance in defense and space offset part of the impact. The results show that weaker revenue and adjusted profitability were linked to delivery performance, business mix and integration costs. The company did not cite supply chain bottlenecks as a reason for the quarterly decline.
In the first nine months of 2026, consolidated revenue rose 7% to 50,645 million euros from 47,436 million, and adjusted EBIT increased 8% to 4,495 million euros from 4,146 million. Net orders for commercial aircraft reached 1,105, up 115% from 514 aircraft in the same period a year earlier. The backlog reached 9,310 aircraft at the end of September, compared with 8,665 a year earlier, an increase of 7%. These figures point to a growing order base alongside cumulative growth in revenue and adjusted earnings, despite declines in both operating measures in the third quarter. Converting orders into aircraft deliveries remains a key part of meeting the annual delivery target.
Airbus delivered a total of 547 commercial aircraft through the end of September 2026, including 72 aircraft to 37 customers in September alone. The company's target of about 870 deliveries in 2026 therefore requires deliveries to accelerate in the remaining months of the year, as it continues to stand by its guidance. Free cash flow before customer financing was negative 1,268 million euros in the first nine months, compared with negative 914 million a year earlier. The company attributed the cash outflow mainly to changes in working capital, including inventory accumulation as deliveries are concentrated at year-end and planned production increases. This reflects cash needs linked to the delivery and production schedule during the period, while the company is targeting free cash flow before customer financing of about 4.5 billion euros for the full year.
The company also maintained its target of about 7.5 billion euros in adjusted EBIT for 2026, along with its target of delivering about 870 commercial aircraft. It said these forecasts assume no further disruption to global trade or the economy, air traffic, the supply chain, internal operations, or its ability to deliver products and services. Airbus had net cash of 7,042 million euros on September 30, compared with 12,171 million at the end of 2025. In June, the company said the second A320 family assembly line in Toulouse supported its production ramp-up path, and that it expected to reach 70 to 75 aircraft per month by the end of 2027 and stabilize at a rate of 75 aircraft thereafter. The production target reflects a path extending beyond the current guidance year, while 2026 targets depend on completing the remaining deliveries without further disruption, as the company assumes.
EADSY shares closed at $53.49 on October 27, 2026, according to EL7 data. Airbus is scheduled to hold its analyst conference on nine-month results on October 28, 2026, at 19:30 Central European Time. The conference gives the company an opportunity to present the period's results and its full-year guidance to analysts after the figures are released. The event also comes as the annual delivery target still requires a substantial portion of deliveries to be completed in the fourth quarter. The assumption of no further disruption remains part of the announced guidance.