Leonardo Leaves 2026 Guidance Unchanged After Strong Q1 Results, CEO Change
Leonardo's Q1 Performance and Leadership Transition
ROME, May 6 (Reuters) - Italian aerospace and defence group Leonardo left its 2026 guidance unchanged on Wednesday, despite a 33% rise in first-quarter core earnings, as the outgoing CEO said any revision should be decided by the incoming management.
Wednesday was Chief Executive Roberto Cingolani's last day in office, after the Italian Treasury, which holds a 30% stake, proposed a former Leonardo executive, Lorenzo Mariani, as the new boss of the state-controlled defence group.
Outgoing CEO's Perspective on Performance
Cingolani, who has been at the helm of the group for three years, said performance was very good "in almost all key performance indicators" and that he would have increased guidance for the year were he staying in office.
"We could have proposed a new guidance, but for fairness will leave the choice to the next top management," he said during a post-results call.
Strategic Acquisitions and Future Outlook
He said the acquisition of Iveco Defence Vehicles, finalised in the second half of March, had a "very promising" upside.
Financial Results Overview
Core Profit and Revenue Growth
WELL ON TRACK TO DELIVER FULL-YEAR GUIDANCE
A 33% year-on-year rise in first-quarter core profit was driven by Leonardo's defence electronics unit, despite a negative impact from exchange rates on U.S. components.
Revenue rose 6.9% at current exchange rates to 4.4 billion euros ($5.16 billion), slightly below an average analyst estimate of 4.5 billion euros.
Order Growth and Backlog
New orders in the first three months of the year - traditionally the lightest quarter for most defence companies - were up 30.7% at just over 9 billion euros.
"We are very well on track to deliver our full-year guidance, with a very good momentum in all business divisions," Chief Financial Officer Giuseppe Aurilio said in the call.
The order backlog of the state-controlled conglomerate rose to 56.8 billion euros, as a result of the consolidation of the Iveco Defence Vehicles, acquired from truck maker Iveco.
Integration of Iveco Defence Vehicles
The group said that from April 1, economic and financial results will include the full contribution of the IDV business.
The 1.6-billion-euro acquisition "is a strategically relevant step that strengthens our positioning in land defence, completes our portfolio and consolidates Leonardo's role," Cingolani said in a statement.
Additional Information
($1 = 0.8524 euros)
(Reporting by Giulia Segreti, editing by Cristina Carlevaro, Subhranshu Sahu and Barbara Lewis)
