Spain's Unicaja forecasts higher profits and lending income in 2026 (updated)

Unicaja Banco SA

31/07/2026 06:31

    * Q2 net profit rises 12.2% year-on-year
    * Forecasts mid-single-digit growth in 2026 net profit 
    * Q2 NII rises 2.1% year-on-year, up 2.3% quarter-on-quarter
    * Expects low- to mid-single-digit growth in NII in 2026

 (Rewrites to lead on forecasts, adds details on Spanish
economy, new profit and NII outlook, shares and analyst comment
in paragraphs 5-9)
    By Jesús Aguado
    MADRID, July 31 (Reuters) - Spanish lender Unicaja  UNI.MC 
forecast higher lending income and profit for 2026 on Friday
following a rise in loans helped by the country's solid economy,
after net profit beat analysts' forecasts in the second quarter.
    Spanish banks benefited from variable-rate lending when
interest rates rose, but recent rate cuts squeezed margins. The
Iran war and other geopolitical tensions have since pushed
market rates higher.
    Unicaja's net interest income (NII), a measure of earnings
on loans minus deposit costs, rose 2.1% year-on-year to €382
million ($440 million) in the second quarter, in line with
forecasts, and was up 2.3% quarter-on-quarter.
    Net profit at the country's sixth-largest lender by market
value rose 12.2% to €201 million in the April to June period,
beating a €186 million forecast by analysts.
    At 0709 GMT, shares in Unicaja rose around 3% after broker
Jefferies said that the stronger-than-expected quarterly profit
was "surely positive", but he added that the upgrade in its net
profit outlook on better NII was already priced in.
    The government expects the economy to expand by 2.6% in
2026, up from a previous forecast of 2.2%.
    Against that background, Unicaja said it expected
mid-single-digit growth in net profit in 2026. Its earlier
guidance was less specific, saying it expected a higher profit
than the €632 million it reported for 2025.
    For NII, it said it expected a low-to-mid-single-digit
growth. It previously expected lending income to come in above
the €1.495 billion recorded last year.
    The new target came after the lender's performing loan book
rose 3.7% year-on-year in the second quarter, driven by a rise
in corporate and consumer loans and a recovery in mortgage
lending.
    Net fees rose 2.1% year-on-year in the quarter to €133
million.
    Unicaja announced an interim dividend of 8.44 euro cents per
share, 28% higher than the interim dividend paid a year earlier,
and approved the distribution of an additional cash dividend for
2026, estimated at around 25% of the group's profit.

 ($1 = 0.8686 euros)

 (Reporting by Jesús Aguado; Editing by Javi West and Sonali
Paul)
 ((jesus.aguado@thomsonreuters.com; +34 91 835 68 32; Reuters
Messaging: Reuters Messaging:
jesus.aguado.reuters.com@reuters.net))