Orange raises 2026 profit outlook, talks up satellites as network boost

By Leo Marchandon

Oct 27 (Reuters) - French telecoms group Orange ORAN.PA on Tuesday lifted its 2026 core profit growth target buoyed by growth in Africa, Poland and Spain, and said satellite connectivity would reinforce rather than undercut its networks.

Orange, Deutsche Telekom DTEGn.DE, Telefónica TEF.MC and Vodafone VOD.L last week said they had agreed to explore a joint bid for the future allocation of spectrum for mobile satellite services in Europe, with an aim to meet customer demand, strengthen the resilience of public networks and protect critical communications.

Satellite connectivity fully complements Orange's networks, providing coverage, completeness and additional revenue, CEO Christel Heydemann told analysts in a post-earnings call.

The profit outlook, now targeting growth above 4.5% instead of above 4%, rests on growth outside France. Third-quarter revenue rose 14.2% in Africa and the Middle East and 7.9% in Poland. Orange is counting on that growth to fund cash returns and the planned SFR takeover while its home market barely grows.

Orange España, the Spanish unit renamed from MasOrange last month, posted a 3.5% revenue jump to €1.91 billion ($2.13 billion) in its first quarter fully consolidated into group accounts. Group revenue grew 3.6% on a comparable basis to €12.19 billion.

Quarterly earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation after leases, a core profit measure widely used by telcos, rose 4.6% to €4.14 billion, beating a company-provided consensus of €4.10 billion.

Operating cash flow increased by 8.8% over the first nine months of the year.

Orange Cyberdefense, the group's cybersecurity arm, booked €1 billion in nine-month revenue selling its threat-detection platform in nine European countries, up 12.2% from a year ago.

($1 = 0.8946 euros)