Holcim Ltd

Holcim reported H1 2026 organic net sales growth of 5.2% and Q2 organic growth of 6.4%; recurring EBIT grew 11.5% in H1 and 13.1% in Q2. EPS was up 7.4% in Swiss francs year over year. The company said Q2 group margin was flat year over year, mainly because of divestments, and reiterated free cash flow guidance of around CHF 2 billion for 2026. For the full year, management upgraded guidance to high-end NextGen Growth 2030 targets: 5% organic net sales growth, 10% organic recurring EBIT growth, further margin expansion, and free cash flow around CHF 2 billion. Leverage is expected to return to around 1.6x by year-end, close to the 1.5x target level, even after acquisitions and about CHF 0.5 billion of annual bolt-on M&A.

Miljan Gutovic framed the quarter as a continuation of strong execution that accelerated in Q2, driven by customer demand for sustainable products, cost discipline, and operational excellence. He emphasized Holcim’s strategy of shifting toward higher-value building solutions, circular construction, decarbonization, and value-accretive M&A, saying the acquisitions of Xella and Pacasmayo accelerate NextGen Growth 2030. His tone was confident and constructive, and he repeatedly said the business is resilient across market conditions and that H2 momentum should remain strong.

Steffen Kindler said organic net sales growth represented almost CHF 390 million, while recurring EBIT growth was driven by commercial execution, operational excellence, and disciplined cost management. He noted foreign exchange translation headwinds softened in Q2, said Q2 group margin was flat mainly due to divestments, and reiterated an expectation for further full-year margin expansion with first nine months broadly flat before improvement later in the year. He also said free cash flow is still on track for around CHF 2 billion, leverage should be around 1.6x by year-end, and the company remains within its trajectory to reduce corporate costs from a bit more than 3% of sales after the spin to 2% by end-2026 or at least be in a structure that allows that in 2027.

Analysts focused on EU ETS changes, Europe pricing, Europe and LatAm volume trends, corporate cost savings, leverage and M&A firepower, Xella’s revenue trajectory, and AI savings phasing. Management said the ETS reforms are positive for Holcim and could create additional opportunities, including carbon markets, industrial decarbonization funding, and carbon capture utilization, while pricing is still running at the planned mid-single-digit level with some pockets of upside but nothing like the start of the year. On growth, management said Europe’s weak spot was the U.K. but expects better momentum from infrastructure projects, and in LatAm the softness was mainly country mix, with Argentina softer and Colombia affected by elections. On M&A and balance sheet strength, management said it has significant capacity for more value-accretive deals; on Xella, it said Q1 was weather-hit but Q2 improved and the business should grow through cross-selling and system selling.