Sanoma Corporation, Stock Exchange Release, 28 October 2026 at 8:30 a.m. EET
Sanoma Corporation, Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2026: Strong growth in adjusted operating profit
EARNINGS OUTLOOK FOR 2026 NARROWED TO THE HIGHER END
This release is a summary of Sanoma’s Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2026. The complete report is attached to this release and is also available at www.sanoma.com/en/investors.
Q3 2026
- Net sales were stable in both businesses and the Group’s net sales amounted to EUR 518.9 million (2025: 515.8). In Learning, strong growth in learning content and digital platform sales (incl. the Vicens Vives acquisition), particularly in Poland, was offset by the planned discontinuation of the low-value Dutch distribution contracts. Net sales growth was impacted by late funding decisions in Spain and a more digital sales mix spreading the revenue recognition across the school year. In Media Finland, higher event sales offset lower advertising sales, while subscription sales were stable. The Group’s organic net sales development was -2% (2025: -5%).
- Adjusted operating profit increased to EUR 190.0 million (2025: 172.4) driven by strong earnings growth in Learning, supported by higher learning content sales in the largest markets, especially in Poland and Spain, and improved cost efficiency following Program Solar. Earnings improved also in Media Finland, mainly as a result of the net sales growth and improved operational performance of the events business.
- Operating profit increased to EUR 171.6 million (2025: 81.9). The Group’s items affecting comparability (IACs) amounted to EUR -10.4 million (2025: -82.6) and mainly consisted of costs related to recent acquisitions, a restructuring provision and technology transformation across operations. Purchase price allocation adjustments and amortisations (PPAs) amounted to EUR 8.0 million (2025: 7.9).
- Adjusted EPS was EUR 0.82 (2025: 0.73).
- EPS was EUR 0.78 (2025: 0.34).
- The Group’s Outlook for 2026 is narrowed: In 2026, Sanoma expects that the Group’s net sales will be EUR 1.30‒1.32 billion (2025: 1.30) and the Group’s adjusted operating profit will be EUR 215−225 million (2025: 188).
Q1–Q3 2026
- Net sales amounted to EUR 1,074.7 million (2025: 1,076.7). In Learning, net sales were stable as strong growth in learning content and digital platform sales (incl. the Vicens Vives acquisition) was mostly offset by the planned discontinuation of the low-value Dutch distribution contracts. Net sales growth was also impacted by late funding decisions in Spain. Net sales decreased slightly in Media Finland mainly due to lower advertising sales. The Group’s organic net sales development was -2% (2025: -3%), being -2% in Learning and -3% in Media Finland.
- Adjusted operating profit grew strongly and amounted to EUR 236.4 million (2025: 215.6). In Learning, earnings increased driven by higher learning content sales in the largest markets, especially in Poland and Spain, and improved cost efficiency following Program Solar. Earnings increased also in Media Finland driven by improved profitability of events as well as continued good cost containment.
- Operating profit increased to EUR 190.8 million (2025: 99.5). IACs decreased to EUR -22.0 million (2025: -90.6) and mainly consisted of costs related to recent acquisitions and technology transformation across operations. PPAs amounted to EUR 23.7 million (2025: 25.5).
- Adjusted EPS was EUR 0.92 (2025: 0.76).
- EPS was EUR 0.82 (2025: 0.34).
- Free cash flow declined to EUR 43.2 million (2025: 63.0) as the positive impact of higher earnings was more than offset mainly by seasonally higher working capital.
- Net debt/Adj. EBITDA amounted to 2.7 (2025: 2.0), being close to the target level of ‘below 2.5’.
- On 7 May 2026, the Annual General Meeting decided that a dividend of EUR 0.42 per share (2024: 0.39) shall be paid for 2025 in three equal instalments. The first instalment of EUR 0.14 was paid on 19 May and the second instalment of EUR 0.14 on 22 September. The third instalment of EUR 0.14 will be paid on 10 November.
- On 30 April, Sanoma strengthened its position in Spain by acquiring Vicens Vives, one of the major local learning content providers.
Outlook for 2026 (narrowed)
In 2026, Sanoma expects that the Group’s net sales will be EUR 1.30‒1.32 billion (2025: 1.30) and the Group’s adjusted operating profit will be EUR 215−225 million (2025: 188).
The outlook is based on the following assumptions:
- Demand for learning content will increase, driven by curriculum renewals in some of the Group’s operating markets.
- The advertising market in Finland will be relatively stable.
Previous outlook for 2026 (given 11 February 2026)
In 2026, Sanoma expects that the Group’s net sales will be EUR 1.29‒1.34 billion (2025: 1.30) and the Group’s adjusted operating profit will be EUR 205−225 million (2025: 188).
The outlook is based on the following assumptions:
- Demand for learning content will increase, driven by curriculum renewals in some of the Group’s operating markets.
- The advertising market in Finland will be relatively stable.
President and CEO Rob Kolkman:
- Strong growth in the Group’s adjusted operating profit; earnings improved in both Learning and Media Finland
- In Learning, strong growth in learning content and digital platform sales
- Earnings Outlook for 2026 narrowed to the higher end
”We had a good third quarter, and with improved earnings in both businesses, we delivered strong growth in the Group’s adjusted operating profit for January–September. Following our performance to date, we have narrowed our earnings Outlook for 2026 to the higher end, and will be delivering the earlier indicated step change in the Group’s adjusted operating profit for this year.
In Learning, reported net sales were relatively stable due to the discontinuation of the low-value Dutch distribution contracts we announced a year ago. Growth in learning content and digital platform sales was strong, driven by Poland, where our renewed offering for the educational reform was well received by teachers and supported by the increased government textbook funding. In Spain, net sales grew mainly driven by the contribution from Vicens Vives, while late government funding decisions in certain regions resulted in a lower change rate of materials in the market. Together with the sales cycle continuing into October, this impacted the organic growth in Spain. Learning content sales continued to grow in the Netherlands. A more digital sales mix in the Netherlands and Belgium results in more revenue recognised over the school year. Examples of our continuing efforts to support teachers and students across Europe include the new maths method supporting the changes in the Dutch curriculum and resulting in an increase in market penetration, as well as a new generation of immersive primary textbooks for the new curriculum in Poland, combining print, digital and VR learning experiences in history, science and maths.
Growth in Learning’s adjusted operating profit was strong, driven by higher learning content sales in our largest markets, in particular Poland and Spain. The benefits of our increased scale and improved operational efficiency became visible with that growth.
Artificial Intelligence is becoming an increasingly integral part of how we work, always with responsible use and human oversight. In October, we launched Sanna as our common educational Teacher Assistant brand with a unified proposition across seven markets. Co-created with more than 1,500 teachers, Sanna combines our trusted content and pedagogical expertise to help teachers save time and differentiate teaching, while enabling us to leverage our scale. We are also progressing well with our AI Student Assistant, which will be launched during this school year. In Media Finland, we have been coaching all our journalists into using AI. This systematic approach started from identifying concrete topics related to each journalist’s day-to-day work rather than from the technology itself. Together with the shared tools that have been developed, this is significantly scaling the use of AI in our newsrooms – always with human oversight. In B2B, AI is helping deepen digital customer dialogue and steer purchasing towards digital channels. By freeing up time for customer work, AI has also helped to generate new business opportunities and sales.
Media Finland’s net sales were stable in the third quarter. Subscription sales continued to be relatively stable, with growth in Ruutu+ and digital news media subscriptions. Our advertising sales declined slightly driven by TV and print advertising in an overall stable market. For the events business, the season was record-breaking with 25,000 more tickets sold compared to the previous year as well as several successful concerts – the series of Eppu Normaali farewell concerts attracted a total audience of 120,000 people. Media Finland’s adjusted operating profit increased, driven by the improved performance of events and our continued robust cost containment.
As indicated earlier, we expect our free cash flow for the full-year 2026 to grow moderately compared to 2025. The collection of our growing learning content sales takes place mostly in the fourth quarter, which – together with the seasonal impact of the acquired Vicens Vives business – was reflected in the January–September free cash flow development.
In line with the seasonality of the learning business, our deleveraging resumed during the third quarter and at 2.7, our leverage (net debt / adjusted EBITDA) was close to its target level. Compared to last year, it was affected by the refinancing of the EUR 150 million hybrid bond with senior debt in March, the acquisition of Vicens Vives at the end of April and extension of rental agreements of our main properties in Finland.
Our positive impact and robust sustainability progress received further recognition during the quarter. In September, our ISS Corporate Rating was upgraded to Prime B, and our Morningstar Sustainalytics ESG Risk Rating improved to 9.9, placing Sanoma in the Negligible Risk category. Morningstar Sustainalytics also awarded us a Low Carbon Leader status, indicating strong performance on carbon risk and emissions management.
Following our strong performance in January–September, we have narrowed our earnings Outlook for 2026 to the higher end of the original range. We now expect the Group’s net sales to be EUR 1.30–1.32 billion and adjusted operating profit to be EUR 215–225 million (2025: 188), indicating a significant step change in the Group’s adjusted operating profit compared to 2025.
Looking ahead, we continue to focus on capturing exciting growth opportunities across our business, increasing our adjusted operating profit over 2026–2030 and creating long-term value for our stakeholders. I would like to warmly thank all Sanoma employees for a successful third quarter, and for their continued commitment and passion in supporting our customers.”
Key indicators
| EUR million | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Change | Q1–Q3 2026 | Q1–Q3 2025 | Change | FY 2025 |
| Net sales | 518.9 | 515.8 | 1% | 1,074.7 | 1,076.7 | 0% | 1,302.5 |
| Adjusted EBITDA 1) | 228.9 | 211.4 | 8% | 358.4 | 344.6 | 4% | 366.1 |
| Margin 1) | 44.1% | 41.0% | 33.3% | 32.0% | 28.1% | ||
| Adjusted operating profit 2) | 190.0 | 172.4 | 10% | 236.4 | 215.6 | 10% | 188.2 |
| Margin 2) | 36.6% | 33.4% | 22.0% | 20.0% | 14.4% | ||
| Operating profit | 171.6 | 81.9 | 110% | 190.8 | 99.5 | 92% | 48.6 |
| Result for the period | 125.2 | 57.6 | 118% | 133.7 | 62.1 | 115% | 19.9 |
| Free cash flow 3) | 116.6 | 130.7 | -11% | 43.2 | 63.0 | -31% | 128.6 |
| Equity ratio 4) | 34.3% | 43.1% | 47.1% | ||||
| Net debt | 716.0 | 535.9 | 34% | 486.1 | |||
| Net debt / Adj. EBITDA 5) | 2.7 | 2.0 | 31% | 1.8 | |||
| Adjusted EPS, EUR 1) | 0.82 | 0.73 | 13% | 0.92 | 0.76 | 20% | 0.57 |
| EPS, EUR | 0.78 | 0.34 | 129% | 0.82 | 0.34 | 143% | 0.06 |
| Free cash flow per share, EUR 3) | 0.72 | 0.80 | -11% | 0.27 | 0.39 | -31% | 0.79 |
| Average number of employees (FTE) | 4,708 | 4,676 | 1% | 4,645 | |||
| Number of employees at the end of the period (FTE) | 4,755 | 4,544 | 5% | 4,554 |
1) Excluding IACs
2) Excluding IACs and purchase price allocation adjustments and amortisations (PPAs)
3) Definition amended in 2026 to include payments of lease liabilities. Using the previous definition free cash flow was EUR 138.0 million in Q3 2025, EUR 86.3 million in Q1–Q3 2025 and EUR 159.7 million in FY 2025 and free cash flow per share was EUR 0.85 in Q3 2025, EUR 0.53 in Q1–Q3 2025 and EUR 0.98 in FY 2025.
4) Advances received included in the formula of equity ratio were EUR 193.9 million in Q1–Q3 2026 (2025: 186.9).
5) The adjusted EBITDA used in this ratio is the 12-month rolling adjusted EBITDA, where acquired operations are included and divested operations excluded, and where programming rights and prepublication rights have been raised above EBITDA on the basis of cash flow.
Analyst and investor conference
An analyst and investor conference will be held in English by the President and CEO Rob Kolkman and CFO Alex Green today at 11:00 a.m. EET at Sanomatalo, Flik Studio Eliel, 1st floor, Töölönlahdenkatu 2, Helsinki.
The conference can be followed as a live webcast at https://sanoma.events.inderes.com/q3-2026.
The management presentation is followed by a Q&A session. Questions can be placed through the webcast chat function or by phone. To ask questions by phone, the participant is required to register at https://events.inderes.com/sanoma/q3-2026/dial-in. After the registration you will receive the phone number and conference ID to access the conference. If you wish to ask a question, please press *5 on your telephone keypad to enter the queue.
An on-demand replay of the webcast will be available shortly after the conference at www.sanoma.com/en/investors.
Interview opportunities for media by Teams or by phone are available after the conference. Media representatives are asked to book interviews via email at ir@sanoma.com.
Additional information
Kaisa Uurasmaa, Head of Investor Relations and Sustainability, tel. +358 40 560 5601
Sanoma
Sanoma is an innovative and agile learning and media company impacting the lives of millions every day. Across Europe, we support teachers and students with the best-in-class learning content and solutions to help all students reach their potential. We combine pedagogical expertise with quality content and innovative educational technologies to help shape the future of K12 education.
Our Finnish media provide independent journalism and engaging entertainment also for generations to come. Our unique cross-media position offers the widest reach and tailored marketing solutions for our business partners.
We have a clear organic growth pathway in K12 education and aim to accelerate growth through value-creating M&A. Across our business, we are responsibly harnessing the opportunities of AI, always emphasising human oversight. Our Sustainability Strategy is designed to maximise our positive ‘brainprint’ on society and to minimise our environmental footprint. We are committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and signatory to the UN Global Compact.
Today, we operate across Europe and employ close to 5,000 professionals. In 2025, our net sales amounted to approx. 1.3bn€ and our adjusted operating profit margin was 14.4%. Sanoma shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki. More information is available at sanoma.com.
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