Nokia kept its 2026 comparable operating-profit target at €2.1 billion to €2.6 billion as third-quarter AI and cloud orders rose 118% year over year, even as the company raised its restructuring estimate and narrowed its cash-conversion range.
Comparable operating profit reached €605 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with €448 million a year earlier. Infront’s Oct. 15 analyst consensus, published by Nokia, put the average estimate at €453 million. Nokia said the estimates came from third parties and were not independently verified. Net sales increased 10% to €5.154 billion, above the consensus average of €5.054 billion.
AI and cloud customers bought €631 million in products and services, up from €279 million a year earlier. Nokia reported 123% growth on a constant-currency basis. Order intake from the group climbed to €1.5 billion. Nokia also forecast 25% to 30% growth in its combined Optical and IP Networks businesses in 2027.
The comparable measure removes selected costs, including restructuring charges and amortization of acquired assets. Reported operating profit, which includes those items, fell 22% to €196 million. Nokia said the gap mainly reflected €357 million in restructuring and associated charges, €46 million in acquired-asset amortization and depreciation, and €8 million in Infinera integration costs. Free cash flow was negative €99 million in the quarter.
Nokia now expects €1.1 billion in restructuring and associated charges for 2026, up from its previous €800 million estimate. The company attributed the increase to expanded programs aimed at simplifying its operations and location strategy. It also lowered its free-cash-flow conversion assumption to 35% to 55%, from 55% to 75% in its Q2 report. Reaching above the midpoint of its annual profit range depends on a substantial increase in comparable operating profit in the fourth quarter.
In July, Nokia linked customers’ longer purchasing horizons to supply limits. It projected that about half of the €2.8 billion in AI and cloud orders received in Q2 would become revenue within a year. The latest results continue EconoTimes’ earlier coverage of Nokia’s comparable and reported profit. Nokia plans to publish its fourth-quarter and full-year 2026 results on Jan. 28, 2027.
