Norwegian posts net profit of 1.838 billion kroner despite 28% annual decline
Key Facts
Norwegian Group posted a net profit of 1,838 million Norwegian kroner in the third quarter of 2026, compared with 2,549 million kroner in the same period last year, according to its financial report. Operating profit was 2,728 million kroner, with an operating margin of 21.4%, while pre-tax profit reached 2,520 million kroner. Operating profit was above analysts' expectations of 2.3 billion kroner in a company poll, Reuters reported. The group said third-quarter 2025 results included gains from aircraft acquisitions and compensation for delayed aircraft deliveries. This puts the annual decline in net profit in the context of a comparison affected by exceptional items in the corresponding period.
The group carried 8.75 million passengers during the quarter, including 7.64 million on Norwegian and 1.1 million on Widerøe, according to the company statement. Norwegian's operating capacity increased by 5%, while Widerøe's rose by 2%. Norwegian's load factor was 88.5%, up 0.2 percentage points from the third quarter of the previous year, compared with 76.1% at Widerøe. The company said demand was strong across its core markets during the peak summer season. It added that movements in jet fuel prices and changes in the value of the krone against the dollar affected results.
Departure punctuality improved to 80.7% at Norwegian and 93.5% at Widerøe, according to the group's disclosure. The metric rose at both airlines compared with the previous year, while flight regularity reached 99.3% and 97.9%, respectively. The company attributed disruption to flight regularity at both carriers to an air traffic controllers' strike in Norway during August. Chief Executive Geir Karlsen said booking indicators "remain encouraging" and that the number of tickets sold was significantly higher than in the same period last year. Norwegian Reward membership exceeded ten million by September, and Karlsen said new membership levels and the shared loyalty platform Spenn strengthen the group's offering in Nordic markets.
The group's liquidity stood at 11.2 billion kroner at the end of the quarter, up 0.7 billion kroner from the end of the third quarter of 2025, according to its statement. The company said it repaid its last outstanding bond in September. The group had 148 aircraft at the end of the quarter, including 98 at Norwegian and 50 at Widerøe. Norwegian took delivery of three new Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft during the quarter, bringing its fleet of that model to 39. On expansion, the group said the regulatory process for its acquisition of Nordic Leisure Travel Group was progressing as planned, with completion targeted by year-end, subject to European competition approval.
The group expects operating capacity to grow by 2% at both Norwegian and Widerøe during 2026, according to its full-year guidance. Norwegian said Program X initiatives are on track to deliver recurring annual improvements in underlying profit exceeding 1.25 billion kroner by year-end. The company also expects Norwegian's underlying unit cost, excluding fuel, to remain unchanged in 2026 compared with 2025. On monetary policy, Norges Bank raised its policy rate from 4.25% to 4.50% in September, with its next decision due on 5 November 2026. That remains the next decision date announced by the bank, with no specific outcome forecast in the information available.