Daimler Truck’s Adjusted Operating Profit Jumps 73% to €1.124 Billion
Key Facts
Daimler Truck said on November 6 that the group’s adjusted operating profit rose 73% in the third quarter of 2026 to €1.124 billion from €648 million in the same period a year earlier. Industrial revenue grew 20% to €11.635 billion, compared with €9.695 billion. Chief Executive Karin Rådström said the quarter’s results "show that our business is gaining continued momentum." The company attributed the performance to higher sales and a contribution from the North American truck segment, alongside progress across the group. It reaffirmed its full-year outlook, which it raised in August, signaling that it continues to bet on an improving U.S. market through the rest of the year.
At group level, incoming orders rose 10% to 71,168 vehicles in the third quarter, from 64,412 in the same period of 2025. Unit sales increased 26% to 91,260 vehicles, compared with 72,277 a year earlier. The figures show a broadening improvement in commercial activity, with sales growth outpacing order growth during the period. North America was the main engine, with incoming orders there up 12% to 29,357 vehicles. Segment sales rose 51% to 45,629 vehicles, compared with 30,225 in the third quarter of the previous year.
The expansion in North American sales was reflected in segment revenue, which rose 43% to €5.704 billion from €3.996 billion a year earlier. The segment’s adjusted operating profit increased to €691 million, compared with €257 million in the third quarter of 2025. Reuters reported that trucking companies resumed fleet renewals after three years of holding back on purchases. This coincided with a 51% increase in North American truck sales during the quarter, consistent with improving demand and sales in the segment. Rådström said the company improved profitability while continuing to focus on customers around the world.
The improvement did not extend to all activities: incoming orders at Daimler Buses fell 16% to 4,344 units, and sales declined by the same percentage to 5,394 units. The segment’s adjusted operating profit fell 10% to €123 million. This highlights the contrast between North American truck performance and the bus segment, despite growth in orders and sales at group level. Compared with the second quarter of 2026, the group’s adjusted operating profit had fallen 18% to €838 million, from €1.022 billion in the second quarter of 2025. The industrial business’s adjusted return on sales margin remained at 6.8% in that quarter.
Industrial free cash flow improved to €974 million in the third quarter, from €24 million a year earlier. The company attributed the increase to higher earnings, as well as proceeds from the partial sale of its stake in ARCHION. Chief Financial Officer Eva Scherer said the strong cash flow "shows our discipline in generating liquidity from our operational strength." She added that the company wants to maintain that discipline and finish the year strongly. Higher cash flow, alongside increased profitability, adds another dimension to the quarter’s results, with part of the improvement still linked to proceeds from the stake sale.
Daimler Truck reaffirmed its 2026 outlook range, including an adjusted return on sales for the industrial business of between 7% and 9%. In August, the company had raised its expected margin range from 6% to 8% and lifted its forecast for group adjusted operating profit to between €3.6 billion and €4.1 billion, from €3.2 billion to €3.7 billion. That earlier update sets the framework for the full-year outlook, which the company left unchanged after its third-quarter results. U.S. Census Bureau data showed factory orders rose 1.8% in September 2026 compared with August, after increasing 0.3% in August compared with July. DTRUY shares closed at $23.27 on November 5, the eve of the third-quarter results release.