Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Logista's First Half 2026 Results Presentation. I'm Isabel Troya, Head of IR at Logista. Today, Pedro Losada, our CFO, will walk you through the results for the period. Following the presentation, we will hold a Q&A session to address the questions submitted through the platform. You may submit your questions at any time during the presentation.
Now, Pedro will proceed with the results. Pedro, if you may.
Thank you, Isabel. Good morning, everyone, and thanks to all joining us today. I would like to highlight four key takeaways from our first half 2026 results. First, we deliver a solid underlying performance across our main activities in Iberia and Italy, excluding the profit on inventory effect, which was exceptionally high in 2025. In particular, pharma recorded a positive performance, while tobacco in Italy and Iberia also showed a resilient performance once the profit on inventory effect is excluded. Second, excise tax increases in France and Italy led to a subsequent retail price increases. In Spain, retail price also increased despite no changes in excise duties. All go together, these price movements resulted in a total profit on inventory of EUR 32 million for the period.
Third, the semester took place in a complex macroeconomic environment, which I will address in more detail in the following slides. Finally, we maintain our strong commitment to ESG, continue to make progress on our sustainability agenda 2024, 2026. I will now walk through these key highlights in more detail. Turning to financial performance, revenues reached EUR 6.6 billion, up 3%. Economic sales were EUR 904 million, down 1%, and adjusted EBIT reached EUR 199 million, down 4%. This decrease in Economic sales and adjusted EBIT is mainly explained by a lower contribution from inventory revaluation gains, which totaled EUR 32 million during the semester, compared to EUR 46 million recorded in the same period last year.
Net profit was EUR 136 million, representing a 10% decrease year-on-year, mainly due to the decrease in profit on inventory just mentioned and a lower financial income for the period. Finally, looking at economic sales by region, Iberia delivered EUR 583 million, Italy EUR 222 million, and France EUR 102 million. Later on, we will dive deeper into each of the regions. During the period, excise tax and retail price increases were implemented, particularly. In Spain, there were no changes in excise taxes. The main manufacturers increased retail prices by EUR 0.25 per pack. In Italy, excise duties increased by approximately EUR 0.10 per pack, followed by retail price increases of EUR 0.20-EUR 0.30 per pack implemented by manufacturers.
In France, the government continued its policy of increasing tobacco taxation to consumption, albeit at a much more moderate pace than in previous years. The average excise tax increase amounted EUR 0.07 per pack. Manufacturers implemented retail price increases up to EUR 0.50 per pack, aiming not only at offsetting the excise tax increase, but also at covering the new eco-tax on cigarette filters. This tax, paid directly by the manufacturers, represents approximately EUR 0.13 per pack, and it's intended to fund the collection and cleanup of cigarette butts, classified as single-use plastic waste. These movements resulted in an inventory profit of approximately EUR 32 million for the period.
Let me now turn to the macroeconomic context. The current environment, shaped by geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran, presents both risks and opportunities for the logistics sector and particularly for Logista. On the risk side, higher oil prices could put pressure on logistic costs. We largely mitigate this exposure through fuel cost pass-through clauses with most of our clients. While these mechanisms are effective, there may be temporary timing effects depending on contractual implementation. Governments' grants and support measures help to partially cushion the impact to fuel prices increases.
A further risk is linked to a potential escalation in macroeconomic uncertainty, which could lead to higher inflation and potentially affect demand. On inflation, similarly to fuel costs, we have inflation adjustments clause with our largest clients, again, with possible short-term timing effects. As regards demand, our business remains predominantly exposed to tobacco and pharmaceutical products, which have historically proven resilient to macro cycles. In more cyclical areas, such as food distribution, we have not seen slowdown in demand to date.
There are also some exposure to our sea freight activities. The current geopolitical situation has led shipping companies to introduce surcharges rapidly, increasing container costs. Typically in these segments, higher freight rates do not generally pressure margins and in some cases can even result in higher margins per transport for logistic operators. Sustained macroeconomic uncertainty and inflationary pressures could lead to higher interest rates. Even in this context, rising rates would represent an opportunity for Logista as we would benefit through our credit line agreement. Having said that, we need to take into consideration the full length of the conflict to assess the potential impact Logista may have resulting from the macro situation.
Turning to sustainability, let me brief highlight the progress made under the 2024/2026 Sustainability Plan. On the environmental front, we remain firmly focused on decarbonization our fleet and transportation services account for 96% of our total emissions. A key lever in the progressive shift towards Euro 6 vehicles, which are more efficient and less polluting. During the semester, 87% of total kilometers were traveled using Euro 6 vehicles, keeping us well on track to reach our 90% target by 2026. In circular economy, we continue to expand our NGP device recycling program through the installation of dedicated collection boxes in tobacconists and the end-to-end management of the recycling process. The program is active in all three countries, with Spain and France still in the ramp-up phase.
To date, boxes have been deployed in nearly 37,000 points of sale, comfortably surpassing our 2026 target. On the social side, diversity remains our core pillar of our strategy. We set a target of 30% female representation in upper and middle management by 2026, a level we have already exceeded, reaching 31%, and we remain committed to sustaining this progress. We also continue to uphold our KPI of 50% female representation in selection processes among final candidates. From a governance perspective, we are further strengthening the data protection awareness initiatives and reinforcing our cybersecurity governance framework across the group.
Finally, we are already working on the next sustainability plan for 2027/2030, which will define the next phase of our ESG roadmap and ambition. I will now give you some more details on each of the countries. Starting with Iberia, our largest market, economic sales declined by 3% to EUR 583 million, while adjusted EBIT also decreased by 3% to EUR 104 million. Both declines are mainly explained by a lower contribution from profit on inventory compared to last year. Looking at the different segments, in tobacco, total volumes in Spain and Portugal declined by 1.2% year-on-year. This reflects a 2% decrease in traditional cigarette volumes in Spain, which was partially offset by growth in traditional tobacco, Grow Your Own and NGPs in Portugal.
During the period, we recorded EUR 24 million on profit on inventory, driven by retail price increases in Spain, compared to EUR 34 million last year, which explains most of the year-on-year variance. In parallel, we continue making progress in our recycling initiative, with close to 1,500 tobacconists in Spain already participating in the program. In transport, the long-distance segment continues to execute the optimization program at El Mosca, focused on cost reductions and customer mix improvement. Activity was impacted by a delayed fruit season, swine flu affecting international maritime traffic and, to some extent, higher fuel prices linked to the Iran conflict discussed earlier.
The industrial parcel business delivers solid and sustainable growth, with higher delivery volumes offsetting the weaker performance of Carbó, which is still undergoing its optimization. In Courier, we delivered a very strong performance in Spain and Portugal, with high single-digit growth, further supported by good momentum in the Netherlands. In Pharma, economic sales grew by 8%, supported by a new laboratory agreement, expanded services with existing clients, and a strong performance in the pharmacy channel. Finally, in the publication business, we recorded a decline in distributed volumes. We are currently in the process of selling this business, having already received the CNMC approval, and we expect to announce the completion of it in the coming months.
Turning to Italy, economic sales reached EUR 222 million, representing a 4% year-over-year increase, while adjusted EBIT declined slightly by 1% to EUR 67 million. This decrease is mainly explained by a lower contribution from profit on inventory compared to last year. During the period, total tobacco volumes declined by 0.9%, driven by a 2.5% decrease in traditional tobacco, which was partially offset by growth in roll-your-own and other categories. In particular, heated tobacco units deliver healthy growth. Following the government's excise tax increase, manufacturers raised retail prices, which helped mitigate the impact of the higher taxation. As a result, we recorded EUR 4 million in profit on inventory compared to EUR 9 million in the previous year, explaining most of the year-over-year variance.
In convenience distribution, our recycled cigarette initiative continues to gain traction, with over 31,000 tobacconists across Italy now participating in the NGP device recycling program. Finally, in pharmaceutical distribution, our continued commercial efforts delivered double-digit growth in economic sales, driven by organic expansion through new laboratory contracts and renegotiations with existing clients. Turning to France, economic sales declined by 3% year-on-year to EUR 102 million, while adjusted EBIT fell by 12% to EUR 24 million, reflecting the decline in tobacco volumes in the market. As in Italy, the French government implemented further excise tax increases, which were followed by a EUR 0.50 per packing price increase by tobacco manufacturers. These measures results in a positive impact on inventory valuation of EUR 5 million, slightly above the EUR 4 million recorded last year.
Tobacco volumes distributed in France declined by 7%, continuing the trend of faster volume contraction compared to Spain and Italy. In convenience products, we continue to see growth in electronic transactions, particularly in e-money and recharge cards. In parallel, adoption of our Strator point of sale solution continues to expand, with more tobacconists integrating both software and hardware enhances their device offering through more personalized features. Finally, our NGP device recycling initiative in France continues to scale, with almost 4,000 tobacconists now participating in the program. After giving you details on each region, we will move into consolidated figures for the period.
Total adjusted EBIT for the semester amounted to EUR 195 million, representing a 4% decline year-on-year. This decrease was primarily driven by a lower contribution from profit on inventory compared to last year. This lower inventory revaluation also explains the 1% decline in economic sales over the period. Reported EBIT reached EUR 159 million, down 9% year-on-year. This figure includes EUR 5 million in restructuring costs compared with EUR 2 million last year, as well as a EUR 1 million impairment related to the assets of the publication businesses. These items compare negatively with the EUR 3 million capital gain recognized in the previous year from the sale of certain assets in Spain. At the bottom line, net profit decreased by 10% to EUR 136 million, mainly reflecting a lower contribution from profit on inventory and weaker financial results during the period.
Financial income declined to EUR 32 million compared to EUR 34 million last year. The average reference rate for the period stood at 2.48% plus spread of 75 basis points versus 3.03% plus the same 75 basis point spread in the previous year. Partially offsetting this effect, the average credit line balance increased to EUR 1.9 billion from EUR 1.7 billion last year, driven by improvements in excise tax payments terms in Italy and VAT payments conditions in France. Besides, despite the decline in profit before tax, taxes increased slightly, reflecting a higher effective tax rate, mainly due to temporary special tax on large companies set in France. Earnings per share for the period amounted to EUR 1.03 compared to the EUR 1.14 in first half 2025.
EBITDA for the period reached EUR 251 million, down 4% year-on-year, mainly reflecting the lower contribution from profit on inventory. Financial income amounted to EUR 32 million, slightly below last year due to the lower interest rates during the period, partially offset by a higher average balance on the credit facility. Restructuring and other costs totaled EUR 5 million, while normalized tax payments amounted to EUR 57 million. CapEx reached EUR 24 million, mainly related to warehouse improvements, sorters, digitalization projects, and maintenance investments. Lease payments totaled EUR 33 million, and we closed the period with a normalized operating cash flow of EUR 157 million.
Finally, free cash flow was negative at EUR 536 million, an improvement compared to the negative EUR 585 million recorded last year. Let me walk through you the final remarks and outlook for the year. To summarize, first, our financial performance during the period was supported by operating results and a solid contribution from profit on inventory, albeit a lower level compared to the exceptionally high contribution recorded in 2025. Second, as I have mentioned previously during the presentation, Logista has a defensive business with different measures that help mitigate the current macro environment. Third, we remain firmly committed to ESG, executing our ambitious plan through the 2024-2026 sustainability plan.
Finally, we continue to deliver a sustainable and balanced shareholder remuneration. Looking ahead to the remainder of fiscal year 2026, we reiterate our guidance and expect adjusted EBIT, excluding profit on inventory, to grow at a mid-single digit rate. This growth will be supported by continuous strength of our core businesses and disciplined cost management. We remain committed to our diversification strategy, actively pursuing small and mid-sized acquisitions that strengthen our geographical footprint and broaden our business portfolio. Finally, we reaffirm our commitment to shareholder remuneration, and therefore intend to distribute in 2026 at least the same dividend as in 2025.
Now, we will proceed with the Q&A session. Isabel, please, if you may.
Many thanks for the presentation. We will now continue with the Q&A session, going through the different questions sent throughout the platform. The first question comes from Francisco Ruiz, BNP Paribas. "Good morning. My first question is on transport business. We have seen a decline in sales as a result of the new approach of the Mosca, although margins is still low and below Q1 Iberia EX-POI . How do you expect the following quarters to work?
The second is, taking into account the delay of the passing through of oil at current oil levels, what could you be the short-term impact of the coming quarters? If there is any further escalation of prices, could this put at risk full year of 2026, despite you recover it in 2027?
Thank you, Francisco, for your question. Let me go through both of them. On your first question, yeah, the decline in sales as a result of El Mosca, it impacts on the margin. However, two things to take into account. First one is, when you compare Q2 versus Q2 last year, we have an improvement of margin. And when you compare Q1 2026 versus Q1 2025, there's also an improvement in the margin. Having said that, and over the last few years, typically Q1 has a bit better margin from seasonality reasons in Q1 rather than in Q2. The trend is improving.
Of course, with the implementation of all the measures in the transportation business, including El Mosca, we will expect to keep on improving on this margin in Iberia. On your second point with respect to the oil impact, it's true that, you know, we explain in the presentation how we are mitigating the impacts from one business to another. Sometimes we have these contractual protections. We have some timing issues. Sometimes we have clear and quick pass-through of these costs. To your point, it's true that, for example, in the tobacco business, we are recovering any deviation on this on the first year of the next natural year, so on January 1st.
Does that put it at risk, 2026? Well, the answer I believe is no, but will depends on how will evolve the situation. As we said in the presentation, this is taken into consideration with the information that we have today. I think that we are reaching, actually as we speak, $123 on Brent prices, probably the peak level that we have seen since the conflict started. We need to follow the situation. As of today, we can have some impact, not materially impacted the results of 2026 in Logista. Thank you.
Thank you, Pedro. Next question comes from Juan Ros of ODDO. POI expected for H2, and is Italy performance sustainable? Is the market structurally improving?
Thank you, Juan. POI, basically the main positive impact, we have already seen that in the first half of the year as typically it is. However, it is public that, for example, in Italy, there's a price revision of one of the top manufacturers, with EUR 0.19 on cigarettes and roll-your-own EUR 0.15 up, and that could have a positive impact in our POI for the rest of the year. We shouldn't expect much more impact for the rest of the year. With respect to Italy, they had really good results. One of the particularities of Italy is the wave of the new generation products, particularly heat-not-burn, in the market.
Reaching levels of 22%, 24% is probably one of the top markets in terms of penetration, that is helping to offset the decline on traditional cigarettes. All in it's like a - 1% versus last year. Besides, as I said, not only, I mean, heat-not-burn, also new generation products are having a very positive impact in the last few years on e-cigarettes, in this case on more in the distribution of Logista and retail Italy, is having also a very good and positive impact that is helping this level of results from Italy.
Thank you, Pedro. Our next question is from Javier Garcia at Edel. Could you tell us more about the distribution services to manufacturers in the Netherlands? Do you distribute heated tobacco to tobacconists or just the devices? What are your future expectations for this service?
Thank you, Javier. Well, we started with this distribution a couple of years ago. We started with one of the big manufacturers making all the logistics, the primary one, increasing on POS, point of sales. We started with a few. Now we are roughly in 1,500 points of sales of distribution and including more manufacturers. We have three out of the top four. Yes, we are distributing heated tobacco on devices. Still, you know, low volumes over there, but we are aiming to keep on growing on point of sale distribution and keep on growing with additional logistics services to provide to our clients as we do in all of our countries.
Thank you. Our next question is from Philippe Lorrain from Bernstein. Good morning. What kind of tax rate would you expect for full year 2026 and beyond after the increase in Q1, which you have said was driven by France?
Hi, Philippe. In terms of the evolution of tax rate, we are expecting the same levels as we have seen in the first half.
Thank you. Next question is from Julián Megías of Kepler. Good morning. Many thanks for your presentations. Two questions from my side. One, NGP products volumes in Italy slowed this quarter to mid-single digit growth. What are the margin reason, main reasons behind? What's your outlook for the segment? Second questions, are you planning any measures to tackle the margin deterioration in France's tobacco business? Would you be willing to reduce capacity? Three, what drove the strong positive working capital in Q2?
Okay, Julián, thanks very much. The NGP products, as I said, in Italy is keep on growing quite on a healthy pace. Sometimes depending more on the evolution of the e-cigarettes, you may have in quarters a different evolution, but the positive trend is already there. Particularly on HnB, it's a continuous growth in both tobacco and a little bit less in devices. The outlook is, as I said before, with respect to Italy, is maintaining the same level of penetration of NGPs in the market. We have to offset the decline on traditional cigarettes, the outcome for us is positive for the rest of the year.
With respect to deterioration of the French tobacco business, and on how we are tackle this deterioration, well, we have advanced and communicate several times, we have advanced several times that on the French situation, we are really conscious about the volumes declines. Remember that the way the French administration wants to fight against tobacco consumption is, it's with excise taxes and getting higher and higher. That has had an impact on the tobacco consumption for sure, at least the one that is official.
As you have heard from us many times, we also detected that the illicit and illegal tobacco consumption is keeping on growing and is close probably to something around 38%, 40%. From Logista point of view, we also make all the decisions to protect the results from an operating point of view. Trying to control cost. Trying to increase the, from a revenue point of view, our services to either tobacconist or manufacturers, as well as control from a warehousing personal perspective. As you saw in the last few years with including a closure of a big warehouse. We keep on following closely our chances to maintain positive evolution on the operating result, plus containing the cost.
Bear in mind that the higher the excise tax also has an impact on our ability to manage a higher cash, which has a positive impact on the financial revenue. It's fair also not only to take into consideration the deterioration of the volumes and how that impact on the operating result, but also the final impact of the French business in the net profit of Logista. And with respect to the working capital, I think that I mentioned before, but it's the normal trend from quarter to quarter.
Again, quarter Q1 a little bit better than Q2. If you compare with Q1, Q2 with respect to last year, there's an improvement of 100 basis points. It's the same trend on than previous years.
Thank you. Next question comes from JB Capital. Can you provide a bit more details on the ongoing M&A conversations? What assets are you looking at? Can we expect some M&A to happen in this fiscal year?
Thank you, Joaquín . We work a lot to execute our strategic inorganic growth plan. We are working in several opportunities as we have done in the past. The point is that in this particular sector, where there are plenty of opportunities all around our geographies and subsectors of the logistics, we have plenty of opportunities to analyze. At this point, you know, we look at opportunities in sectors like pharma, like temperature control. As we mentioned several times, maybe if we have the chance to go for opportunities on the tobacco business, we analyze also as well.
We keep on analyzing the appropriate one that provides the levels of return that Logista is aiming to reach in each of the M&A opportunities that we have on the table, to having, you know, the synergies that we are expecting in each of the transactions. probably it's difficult to see in this fiscal year some M&A to happen, but we are working hard to get things done as soon as possible.
Thank you. There's another question related to M&A which we have just answered. There are no further questions in the platform. Should you have any more questions, we're happy to attend you at our general email of investors.relations@logista.com. Thank you very much all for attending our conference call.