Ahold stock steadies after cyber incident cuts 2026 outlook

Ahold Delhaize reported resilient third-quarter results on November 4, but the Dutch food retailer lowered its 2026 outlook after an October cybersecurity incident disrupted parts of its online and supply-chain operations. The company said in its November 4 results release that quarterly net sales increased 1.9 percent at constant exchange rates to 23.1 billion euros.

Ahold stock traded at 35.38 euros on Lang & Schwarz at 11:02 CET on Thursday, November 12, 2026, 0.45 percent above the Xetra close of Wednesday, November 11. Investing.com identifies the relevant Xetra instrument as AHOG and showed a closing price of 35.22 euros for November 11.

Resilient sales, uneven regional performance

Comparable sales excluding gasoline rose 1.2 percent across the group. Europe was the stronger region, with comparable sales up 2.1 percent and sales increasing 3.1 percent at constant exchange rates to 9.8 billion euros. In the United States, comparable sales excluding gasoline rose 0.5 percent, while sales increased 1.1 percent at constant exchange rates to 13.3 billion euros.

Online sales increased 8.2 percent at constant exchange rates, led by 14.2 percent growth in the United States. Management said this was the tenth consecutive quarter of double-digit U.S. online growth. The group underlying operating margin was 4.1 percent, down 0.1 percentage points at constant exchange rates, while diluted underlying earnings per share rose 1.4 percent to 0.69 euros.

The reported figures included a 976 million euro IFRS operating income and diluted IFRS earnings per share of 0.72 euros. The company said IFRS operating income was 30 million euros above the underlying figure, mainly because of a pension settlement in the U.S. Third-quarter free cash flow reached 445 million euros.

Cyber incident cuts year-end visibility

Ahold Delhaize expects the October incident to reduce fourth-quarter sales by 200 million to 250 million euros and underlying and IFRS operating income by 75 million to 100 million euros. The company said most disruption was contained within two weeks, but restoration work was continuing when the results were published.

Management now expects 2026 underlying operating margin to approach 4.0 percent, compared with previous guidance of around 4.0 percent. Diluted underlying earnings per share growth at constant exchange rates is expected in the low single digits, down from the previous mid- to high-single-digit range. Free cash flow guidance was reduced to around 2.1 billion euros from at least 2.3 billion euros.

Chief Executive Frans Muller described the quarter as resilient and said the company would continue investing in value, convenience and digital capabilities. The outlook revision makes the near-term earnings path more dependent on the pace of operational recovery, while the latest quarter showed continued volume growth and market-share progress in both regions.

The AEX provides the relevant Dutch market backdrop for Ahold Delhaize stock.

The next scheduled milestones are the fourth-quarter and full-year 2026 results on February 17, 2027, followed by the annual report on March 3, according to the company's investor calendar. Further updates and analysis are available on More news and analyses on Ahold Delhaize stock.