Belgium's Solvay Q1 revenue falls 8.5% organically

Solvay SA

07/05/2026 06:13

Overview

Belgian chemical maker's Q1 revenue fell 8.5% organically on soft volumes and pricing pressures

Q1 underlying EBITDA declined 10.1% organically, margin at 21.9%

Company maintained free cash flow in line with normal seasonality

Outlook

Solvay expects 2026 underlying EBITDA between €770 mln and €850 mln

Company sees 2026 free cash flow of at least €200 mln, net of transformation expenses

Solvay does not expect operating environment to improve in short term

Result Drivers

SOFT VOLUMES AND PRICING PRESSURES - Co said Q1 revenue decline reflected soft volumes across most businesses and pricing pressures, especially in soda ash and Coatis

ONE-OFF GAINS AND PORTFOLIO OPTIMIZATION - Q1 EBITDA was supported by a one-off litigation gain and further optimization of Solvay’s CO2 portfolio

STRUCTURAL COST SAVINGS - Structural cost savings initiatives delivered €22 million in Q1 2026, contributing to operational resilience

Company press release: ID:nGNE6MGtB2

Key Details

Metric
Beat/Miss
Actual
Consensus Estimate
Q1 Revenue
EUR 997 mln
Q1 EBITDA
EUR 219 mln
Q1 EBITDA Margin
21.90%
Q1 Free Cash Flow
EUR 26 mln
Q1 ROCE
13.20%


Analyst Coverage

The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 2 "strong buy" or "buy", 7 "hold" and 7 "sell" or "strong sell"

The average consensus recommendation for the diversified chemicals peer group is "buy."

Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Solvay SA is €26.00, about 9.9% below its May 6 closing price of €28.86

The stock recently traded at 11 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 9 three months ago

For questions concerning the data in this report, contact Estimates.Support@lseg.com. For any other questions or feedback, contact reuters.support@thomsonreuters.com.

(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)