DHL AG Raises 2026 Earnings Outlook Following 12 Percent Revenue Growth in Third Quarter

Logistics group DHL AG (XETR:DHL) has increased its full-year 2026 financial targets following preliminary third-quarter revenue growth of roughly 12% year-over-year to approximately 22.6 billion euros. Preliminary operating profit for the quarter rose around 16% to roughly 1.71 billion euros, driven largely by gains in its Express division, where quarterly operating profit reached approximately 1.04 billion euros compared to 692 million euros in the previous year.

The improved performance prompted the company to raise its full-year 2026 operating profit target to over 7.0 billion euros, up from its previous projection of more than 6.5 billion euros. Free cash flow guidance excluding net acquisitions was also upgraded to over 3.2 billion euros from approximately 3.0 billion euros. To support future growth, capital expenditure for 2026 is now planned at around 3.6 billion euros, up from the prior range of 3.0 billion to 3.3 billion euros. Operating profit in the Express division benefited in part from an estimated 100 million euro tailwind linked to capacity constraints.

Investors will get a more complete picture when DHL AG publishes its detailed third-quarter financial results on November 5. Market participants will be monitoring whether the momentum in express delivery and air freight capacity conditions persist through the upcoming peak volume period. Following the announcement, shares of DHL AG were trading up 0.90% at 58.22 euros.