Orange lifted its 2026 core profit target to growth above 4.5% after third-quarter revenue rose 3.6% to €12.19 billion.
Orange raised its full-year profit target on Tuesday after third-quarter revenue rose across every region, with Africa and the Middle East and Poland doing most of the work while France barely grew.
The French telecoms group reported third-quarter revenue of €12.19 billion, up 3.6% on a comparable basis, and EBITDAaL, its core profit measure, of €4.14 billion, up 4.6% on the same basis and ahead of the €4.10 billion consensus the company had gathered from analysts. Revenue rose 14.2% in Africa and the Middle East, 5.3% in its Europe division, 3.5% in Spain and 0.5% in France, while retail services grew 3.3%.
Orange now expects full-year EBITDAaL growth of more than 4.5%, up from a previous target of more than 4%, after growth of 4.8% over the first nine months. Equipment spending fell 2.5% in the quarter, operating cash flow rose 8.8% over nine months, and the company plans a total 2026 dividend of €0.79 per share, up from €0.75 for 2025, with an interim dividend of €0.30 per share payable on 3 December.
Orange's own release gives the revenue, EBITDAaL and guidance figures, and Reuters reporting of the same release confirms the regional breakdown and the consensus comparison. The release also notes the launch of new offers in France, the integration of MasOrange, now renamed Orange España, and growth at Orange Cyberdefense, whose nine-month revenue reached €1 billion, up 12.2%.
Chief executive Christel Heydemann said the quarter confirmed the momentum of the group's plan and thanked staff for driving its projects and transformation. The raised target shifts attention to whether growth outside France can keep offsetting a flat home market, and to the October letter of intent Orange signed with Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica and Vodafone to explore a joint bid for mobile satellite spectrum in Europe. That initiative, if it proceeds, would test whether rivals can cooperate on infrastructure while still competing for customers.