Orange Polska fourth quarter profit tops estimates, upgrades 2028 cash flow goal (updated)
18/02/2026 07:35
Rewrites throughout, adds share move in paragraph 2, analyst comments in paragraph 3 and 4, additional operating details in paragraph 8-10 By Rafal Wojciech Nowak GDANSK, Poland, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Orange Polska OPL.WA beat fourth-quarter core profit expectations on Wednesday, driven by a strong wholesale performance and cost efficiencies, while raising its dividend and setting financial targets for 2026. As of 0935 GMT, shares in the company were up 4.2% to their highest level since January 2013, making them the top gainer in Poland's blue-chip WIG20 index. Erste Group analyst Nora Nagy cited "outstanding performance in the wholesale segment" as a key driver, where revenue excluding legacy services jumped 27% on new fibre and roaming contracts. The group forecasts 2026 core profit growth of 3-5% and organic cash flow of at least 1.1 billion zlotys ($308.8 million), an outlook Nagy said was on the "positive side". Orange Polska also updated its mid-term strategy, upgrading its 2028 organic cash flow target to at least 1.4 billion zlotys while confirming its target for low-to-mid single-digit annual earnings growth. CEO Liudmila Climoc said strong momentum across core services underpinned the performance, which provides a "firm footing" for the next three years. The Polish unit of France's Orange ORAN.PA posted fourth-quarter earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization after leases (EBITDAaL) of 861 million zlotys, above the 843 million zlotys expected by analysts in a Reuters poll. Quarterly revenue increased 4.6% to 3.49 billion zlotys, driven by a 27% rise in wholesale revenues excluding legacy services and a 5.5% rise in core telecom services such as convergence, mobile and broadband. In the final three months of the year, the company added 77,000 post-paid mobile handset users and 42,000 fibre customers, while convergent revenue per user rose 4%. Fourth-quarter net profit dropped 66% to 69 million zlotys, hit by provisions for voluntary staff departures and higher depreciation costs. ($1 = 3.5618 zlotys) (Additional reporting by Marta Maciag; Editing by Matt Scuffham) ((RafalWojciech.Nowak@thomsonreuters.com; +48 58 769 66 63;))