INWIT Posts Third-Quarter Revenue of 268.6 Million Euros as Net Profit Falls 11.8%
Key Facts
INWIT said on November 10 that revenue was 268.6 million euros in the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, down 0.9% from 271.1 million euros in the same period of 2025. The company said the revenue change was affected by challenging market conditions and continued uncertainty surrounding key service agreements. Net profit fell to 81.3 million euros from 92.1 million euros a year earlier, a decline of 11.8%, steeper than the drop in revenue. By contrast, recurring free cash flow rose to 186.0 million euros, up 9.6% year on year. The results reflect the company’s performance amid a contractual dispute with major tenants and a decline in investment spending.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were 241.9 million euros, down 2.2% from 247.4 million euros in the third quarter of 2025. Earnings after leases also fell to 192.3 million euros from 197.8 million euros, a decline of 2.8%. The post-lease margin narrowed to 71.6% from 73.0%, a gap of 1.4 percentage points. These indicators show a decline in operating earnings alongside lower revenue, while the fall in net profit was steeper. The statement did not provide a numerical breakdown linking the decline in net profit to a specific cost item.
Investment totaled 40.9 million euros in the quarter, compared with 58.9 million euros in the same period last year, a decline of 30.6%. INWIT attributed the drop to the well-known tensions with major tenants over the master service agreement and the completion of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan for 5G networks. The company said challenging market conditions and uncertainty surrounding the agreements also affected the change in revenue. Activity data showed 50 new sites and 310 new hosting units added during the quarter, compared with 180 sites and 670 hosting units in the corresponding period. Site and hosting additions therefore declined alongside lower capital spending.
Despite the decline in new additions, the tenancy ratio rose to 2.41 times at the end of the quarter, from 2.37 times a year earlier. Leverage, measured as net debt to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, was 5.5 times, compared with 5.0 times in the third quarter of 2025. It was below the 5.7 times recorded in the second quarter of 2026. For the first nine months of the year, revenue reached 799.6 million euros, down 0.8% from the same period. Net profit for the period was 241.5 million euros, down 12.7% year on year.
Some of the uncertainty is linked to disputes over master service agreements with telecommunications companies. Fastweb and Vodafone announced on March 25, 2026, that they had notified INWIT of their intention to terminate the agreement, which is scheduled to formally end in late March 2028 under the contractual notice period, while the parties negotiate a multiyear transition plan. Also in March, INWIT said escalating tensions with TIM and Fastweb had led it to cut its 2026–2030 estimates, and that it considers the proposed joint venture between TIM, Fastweb and Vodafone to be in conflict with the master service agreements. General Manager Diego Galli said on the results call that the dispute "goes beyond a simple commercial discussion" and that the deadlock puts the current framework and the investment needed to develop and densify the network at risk. He added that the regulatory process could help the parties reach an agreement.
Mediated settlement talks between INWIT and TIM, which began on June 15, ended without an agreement on October 15, 2026. Italy’s communications regulator AGCOM invited the parties to a meeting on November 26 to explore a possible resolution of the contractual issues. INWIT reaffirmed its 2026 guidance, targeting revenue of between 1,050 and 1,090 million euros, a post-lease earnings margin near 72%, recurring free cash flow of between 550 and 590 million euros, and leverage of 5.5 times. Galli told Reuters that the company expects to return to growth in 2027, despite uncertainty over Fastweb and TIM’s decision not to renew their agreements. The board set March 9, 2027, as the date to approve the draft 2026 annual financial statements.