Interim Report Quarter 2, 2026: Essity

Higher volumes and resilient profitability in a volatile external environment

Quarter 2, 2026

• Net sales increased 2.6% to SEK 35,061m (34,185)
• Organic sales growth amounted to 0.3%, of which volume accounted for 1.4% and price/mix -1.1%.
• EBITA amounted to SEK 4,105m (4,628)
• EBITA excl. IAC amounted to SEK 4,685m (4,693)
• EBITA margin excl. IAC decreased 0.3 percentage points to 13.4% (13.7)
• ROCE amounted to 14.0% (16.7) and ROCE excl. IAC was 16.0% (16.9)
• Profit for the period was SEK 2,693m (3,053)
• Earnings per share was SEK 3.94 (4.39)
• A new share buyback program for SEK 3bn commenced on May 12, 2026

CEO’S COMMENTS

Higher volumes and an improved product mix resulted in sales growth for the quarter. Our focus on growth by developing our offerings, investing in marketing and selective price adjustments continued, and we reported good growth in Health & Medical, Personal Care as well as Professional Hygiene. Profitability was healthy even though the geopolitical situation causes higher cost inflation. The execution of launched initiatives is continuing, with the aim to accelerate progress towards the company’s financial targets.

Higher volumes

Organic sales increased during the quarter, driven by volume growth and positive development of the product mix. Three of the four business areas – Health & Medical, Personal Care and Professional Hygiene – contributed positively. Growth remained strong in Incontinence Products Retail, Feminine Care and Medical Solutions. A positive performance was also reported for Incontinence Products Health Care, and Professional Hygiene grew as a result of higher volumes and a favorable product mix. Sales for Consumer Tissue declined due to lower prices and volumes. The business area is currently working intensively to secure profitable volumes and increase prices to address the cost headwinds that emerged during the quarter.

Resilient profitability

Profitability remained resilient in a volatile and continued challenging external environment. We reported higher margins for Health & Medical and Professional Hygiene, while margins in Consumer Tissue and Personal Care declined. Consumer Tissue was negatively impacted by higher cost inflation, which we have not yet offset with price increases.

The cost savings in costs of goods sold as well as in sales and administration were achieved according to plan.

Innovation for customer value and efficiency

Innovation is a key driver of our competitiveness and growth. During the quarter, we launched new products across all business areas, including further developments in the TENA product range and new solutions in Medical Solutions and Professional Hygiene, which both enhance customer value and improve cost efficiency. AI played a role in the launches, for example by shortening product development lead times. AI is increasingly being adopted to drive sales and improve efficiency across the value chain. One example of this is an agentic Group-wide AI solution for procurement deployed during the quarter that is helping to increase efficiency and improve data quality.

Source: Yahoo Finance