ABB Ltd (1ABB) Q3 2026 Earnings Report
IT:1ABB Q3 2026 EPS Results
- Actual EPS
- EUR 0.62
- Consensus EPS
- EUR 0.71
- Beat/Miss
- Missed by -EUR 0.09
- One Year Ago EPS
- EUR 0.59
IT:1ABB Q3 2026 Revenue Results
- Actual Revenue
- EUR 8.62B
- Expected Revenue
- EUR 8.72B
- Beat/Miss
- Missed by -EUR 101.04M
- YoY Revenue Growth
- +9.16%
Earnings Announcement Details
- Quarter
- Q3 2026
- Date
- 10/20/2026
- Time
- Before Open
- Conference Call
- Tuesday, October 20, 2026
ABB Ltd's next earnings date is estimated for January 28, 2027, based on past reporting schedules.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Audio
No earnings call audio is available for this earnings event.
Q3 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
No slide deck is available for this earnings event.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Summary
The call was strongly positive overall. ABB reported record Q3 margins, robust order and backlog growth, broad-based revenue and operational EBITA increases, strong free cash flow, a raised full-year outlook, and substantial strategic and financial capacity for acquisitions. The main negatives were the 2% EPS decline caused by the Rotork-related FX hedge and discontinued operations, continued Motion margin pressure, high utilization in some Electrification product lines, and weak activity in process industries, residential buildings and parts of the Middle East.
For the fourth quarter, ABB expects comparable revenue growth to be broadly similar to the third quarter and a sequential decline in operational EBITA margin slightly less than what we normally see, excluding the positive one-off from a real estate sale that will trigger a gain of about 240 million Swiss francs booked in the fourth quarter; for full-year 2026, comparable growth is expected to be in the low teens range and the reported operational EBITA margin to improve by at least 270 basis points from 2025, including real estate sales. Electrification expects comparable revenue growth in the high teens to low 20% range, with a sequentially softer margin drop than the historical average of around 150 basis points; Motion expects comparable revenue growth similar to the Q3 level and operational EBITA margin to slightly improve sequentially; Automation expects low to mid-single digit comparable revenue growth and operational EBITA margin broadly stable from Q3. CapEx is around $1 billion this year and is not expected to grow significantly over the next few years, with around $1 billion or so still the target, while free cash flow is moving towards $5 billion or so; ABB expects the Mitsubishi Electric joint venture to reach an operational EBITA margin of at least 20%, five years after deal completion, and the transaction to close during the second half of 2027.
- Record Q3 Profitability and Strong ReturnsOperational EBITA margin reached 20.8%, the strongest Q3 margin ever for ABB, while EBIT margin reached a record 19%. Return on capital employed was 29.9%, and ABB reiterated its commitment to deliver more than 20% ROCE when making more sizable acquisitions.
- Robust Group Order Intake and Backlog GrowthThird-quarter order intake was just above $12 billion, up 40% on a comparable basis, with book-to-bill at 1.24. The order backlog expanded to just about $32 billion, almost equivalent to 2025 full-year revenues.
- Broad-Based Revenue and Earnings GrowthAll three business areas contributed to comparable revenue growth of 14%. Volume expansion was the primary driver, complemented by net pricing realization of just about 2%. Operational EBITA increased 24% to $2 billion, with growth in all three business areas.
- Electrification Reached New RecordsElectrification order intake reached a new record of close to $7.7 billion, up 70% from last year and above the already high Q2 level. Revenue was $5.4 billion, up 21% on a comparable basis, supported by higher volumes and around 3% pricing. Operational EBITA increased 27% to $1.4 billion, while the margin rose 110 basis points to 25.6%, a new record for the segment.
- Strong Electrification Demand Beyond Data CentersElectrification data center orders again grew at a triple-digit rate with no signs of slowing customer activity. Excluding data centers, order growth reached the high teens level, and all large Electrification customer segments grew at a double-digit pace. Utility orders benefited from grid refurbishment and expansion investments, while building orders increased due to strong commercial demand.
- Motion Delivered Growth and Expected Q4 Margin ImprovementMotion order intake was $2.5 billion, representing comparable growth of 12%, driven by short-cycle business, grid-related investments, HVAC for commercial buildings and data center cooling, and food and beverage. Revenue was $2.3 billion, up 9% on a comparable basis, including about 2% revenue contribution from M&A. ABB expects Q4 Motion comparable revenue growth similar to Q3 and operational EBITA margin to slightly improve sequentially.
- Automation Margin Improved Despite Stable OrdersAutomation orders were stable versus the prior year at $2.1 billion, with sequential weakness attributed more to timing of order placement than to a change in underlying customer activity. Revenue reached $2.1 billion, up 5% on a comparable basis, and operational EBITA margin improved 90 basis points to 14.8%, supported by backlog execution, product and service performance, and stringent SG&A and R&D cost control.
- Positive Regional Order TrendsComparable orders increased by double digits in all three regions. The Americas increased 70%, driven by the U.S., where orders rose 82% and base orders improved by about 50%. Europe increased 10%, while Asia, Middle East and Africa increased 29%, including 25% growth in China.
- Strong Free Cash Flow GenerationThird-quarter free cash flow was $1.6 billion, up 2% year over year, driven by higher operational earnings in continuing operations. Year-to-date free cash flow reached $3.7 billion, and ABB said it has a good path toward approximately $5 billion for the year. The company also expects around $300 million of cash contribution linked to the announced real estate sale.
- Raised Full-Year 2026 GuidanceABB slightly upgraded its full-year 2026 guidance following the real estate sale. The company now expects comparable growth in the low teens range and reported operational EBITA margin improvement of at least 270 basis points from 2025, including real estate sales. The sale is expected to generate a gain of about 240 million Swiss francs in Q4.
- Mitsubishi Electric Low-Voltage Joint VentureABB announced a 51% ownership stake in a joint venture with Mitsubishi Electric's low-voltage power distribution business, with a clear midterm path to full ownership. The transaction makes ABB the low-voltage market leader in Japan and provides a potential entry point to Southeast Asian markets including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. The business generated around $640 million of fiscal 2025 revenue with a low double-digit EBITA margin, and ABB targets an operational EBITA margin of at least 20% five years after deal completion.
- Attractive Mitsubishi JV Transaction EconomicsThe transaction values the new company at an enterprise value of around $890 million, equivalent to 1.4 times 2025 sales and 11.1 times 2025 EBITA. Including expected synergies, the EV-to-EBITA multiple is expected to reduce into the mid to high single-digit range. ABB expects strong returns, with internal rate of return well above its cost of capital, and expects the deal to close during the second half of 2027.
- Infinitus Direct Current Portfolio LaunchABB launched the Infinitus direct current portfolio, supporting AI data center customers across DC architectures from source to rack, including localized DC designs and native centralized high-density architectures. The portfolio uses five modular building blocks spanning grid connectivity or behind-the-meter generation, DC conversion and distribution, power protection and cooling optimization. Solid-state transformers are available to order in the second half of 2027.
- Documented DC Efficiency and Addressable-Market OpportunityABB stated that a 500 MW data center shifting to DC architecture can reduce conversion losses by more than 5%, saving almost 200 GWh annually. For a 100 MW facility, a 5% energy-efficiency improvement can free up five to six additional megawatts for token generation, worth close to $100 million in potential annual revenue for the operator. ABB believes that up to 75% of electrical power infrastructure spending in a target DC architecture can be linked to gray space, compared with about 55% in a legacy AC architecture.
- Continued Investment in Capacity and AICapital expenditure is tracking at around $1 billion, with investments supporting capacity expansion, particularly in Electrification, until ongoing investments become fully operational during 2027. ABB said it has created almost 10,000 AI agents for employees, is conducting internal AI certification and training, and is applying AI across people, business and functions, and customer-facing technology and products.
- Strong Balance Sheet and M&A CapacityNet debt to EBITA was around 0.2 at the end of Q3. ABB said it could move toward 2x net debt to EBITA while remaining in its rating area, which would free up approximately $13 billion-$14 billion. Management also stated that its ABB Way operating model provides capacity to integrate additional deals.
- Data Center Order Quality and VisibilityABB said large data center projects generally involve significant advance payments or clear cancellation policies. Orders are tied to specific permitted sites with grid connections and funding in place, and ABB does not see pre-ordering. Typical data center lead times range from 12 to 24 months, with orders booked this year expected to ship in 2027 or 2028.
IT:1ABB Earnings History
| Report Date | Fiscal Quarter | Forecast / EPS | Last Year's EPS | EPS YoY Change | Press Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 28, 2027 | 2026 (Q4) | 0.90- | 0.62 | ― | ― |
| Oct 20, 2026 | 2026 (Q3) | 0.710.62 | 0.59 | 4.85% (+0.03) | |
| Jul 16, 2026 | 2026 (Q2) | 0.660.59 | 0.56 | 4.76% (+0.03) | |
| Apr 22, 2026 | 2026 (Q1) | 0.700.65 | 0.54 | 21.67% (+0.12) | |
| Jan 29, 2026 | 2025 (Q4) | 0.590.62 | 0.47 | 32.08% (+0.15) | |
| Oct 16, 2025 | 2025 (Q3) | 0.590.59 | 0.46 | 29.41% (+0.13) | |
| Jul 17, 2025 | 2025 (Q2) | 0.570.56 | 0.53 | 6.78% (+0.04) | |
| Apr 17, 2025 | 2025 (Q1) | 0.490.54 | 0.44 | 22.45% (+0.10) | |
| Jan 30, 2025 | 2024 (Q4) | 0.480.47 | 0.45 | 6.00% (+0.03) | |
| Oct 17, 2024 | 2024 (Q3) | 0.500.46 | 0.43 | 6.25% (+0.03) |
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.