Orange Shares Rise as African Market Drives Strong First-Half Results and Boosted Outlook

Orange’s stock gained over 3% after the telecom giant reported a solid first half with revenues hitting €20.95 billion, surpassing analyst expectations. EBITDAaL reached €6.13 billion, slightly above forecasts, prompting the company to raise its full-year EBITDAaL growth target to more than 4%, up from the previous 3%. also Orange lifted its organic cash flow projection to about €4.3 billion, reflecting a 7.5% increase from prior guidance and 4.2% above consensus.

Strong Momentum in Africa and the Middle East

The standout driver behind Orange’s impressive performance was the Africa and Middle East region, where revenue surged 13.9% in the first half, with the second quarter alone growing 15% year on year. Orange added 10 million new mobile data customers in this market, underscoring the rapid adoption and expanding footprint on the continent. This region’s solid growth helped offset softer results in Spain and steady but modest gains in France.

European Market Updates and Strategic Moves

In Europe, France delivered a slight revenue increase in Q2, beating forecasts that had predicted a minor decline. However, underlying growth without one-off wholesale effects was flat and remains below Orange’s full-year targets. Spain posed challenges with a 2% drop in service revenue and a 3% fall in EBITDAaL during the first half. Orange’s recent full acquisition of MasOrange, following a €4.25 billion deal for the remaining 50% stake, has led to a €2.4 billion accounting gain that inflated net income to €3.6 billion, compared to the previous year’s results. Adjusted net income growth stood at 11.8%, reaching €1.35 billion. Net financial debt rose to €35.7 billion, driven mainly by the MasOrange purchase, and the debt-to-EBITDAaL ratio climbed to 2.4x, with plans to reduce this toward 2x over time.

Orange is also moving forward with a strategic memorandum alongside Bouygues Telecom and Free to jointly acquire SFR, aiming to strengthen its presence in France.

This content is for informational purposes and does not constitute financial advice.