Jumbo reported group sales of EUR 590 million for the first half of 2026, up 4% year on year, while net profit rose 3% to EUR 121 million, according to a Wednesday earnings call transcript.
Gross margin fell 33 basis points to 53.5%, reflecting continued cost pressure. The company said full-year gross margin is expected to remain flat at the first-half level.
The stock closed at $24.40, down 2.79%, after trading in a 52-week range of $21.22 to $31.20.
Sales outside the group fell behind in Romania, where results slipped 6.5%. Management cited inflation, a weaker local leu and a VAT increase as the main factors. Chairman Apostolos Vakakis said the company views Romania's turbulence as an opportunity rather than a threat. A new hyperstore in Baia Mare is scheduled to open in October 2026, and management outlined long-term plans to double the country's store count.
Greece, which accounts for roughly 60% of group sales, grew 7%. Cyprus was up 4%, and Bulgaria, the strongest performer, rose 11%.
The company entered its first eight months with sales up 6% and flagged full-year guidance of around 5% sales growth and net profit between EUR 310 million and EUR 320 million.
At the end of June, Jumbo held EUR 546 million in cash with zero debt. Franchise partner sales rose to approximately EUR 43 million, up from EUR 38 million a year earlier.
Shareholders received EUR 2.20 per share in total cash distributions for 2026, amounting to roughly EUR 296 million. The board approved a EUR 1.00 per share distribution, following prior payments of EUR 0.50 in March and EUR 0.70 in July. Dividend payments have been maintained for 11 consecutive years, according to InvestingPro data.
On expansion, Jumbo is preparing four stores in Greece, with openings expected in 2028 and a 50,000-square-meter facility in Thessaloniki slated for completion in 2027. In Hungary, an online e-commerce platform is targeted for launch by the end of 2026, with physical stores considered at least three years away. A single hyperstore is planned for Bulgaria within the next two years.
The company also announced plans to test a smaller pop-up store format in dense or tourist-heavy locations, targeting three to five openings in its first year between 2027 and 2028. Vakakis described the approach as adding a twist to the existing model rather than changing it.
Franchise partnerships currently operate 48 Jumbo-branded stores across seven countries. Balfin Group is set to open its first store in Moldova in 2026 and extended its cooperation to six additional markets. Fox Group, which operates Jumbo stores in Israel, targets its first Toronto locations by the end of 2026.
