Business
European telecoms sector poised for M&A deals in 2026, JPM says
European telecoms sector poised for M&A deals in 2026, JPM says
About this update from Tele2 Ab Class A
** J.P.Morgan says 2026 should be a year when deals in the European telecoms sector finally arrive** "Whilst 2025 delivered mounting M&A speculation, 2026 should deliver actual deals," the broker says as it sees likely "4-to-3" player deals in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the Nordics** "Should consolidation be permitted, it is feasible the sector could enjoy a major re-rating," JPM predicts as telco's slowly return to growth after two decades of structural decline ** The brokerage notes satellite operators have been the best performers as defence spending ramps up whilst names such as Deutsche Telekom XETR:DTE, Telefonica BME:TEF, and mobile phone tower operators drag down the sector average gain of 14% ** Despite revenue trends looking lacklustre through 2026, JPM analysts project a 14% EPS growth for the sector in the coming year, helped by cost cuts and lower capital spending** Its top picks for 2026 are Orange EURONEXT:ORA, Bouygues EURONEXT:EN, SES EURONEXT:SESG, BT LSE:BT.A, Tele2 OMXSTO:TEL2_A, Telia OMXSTO:TELIA, Sinch OMXSTO:SINCH, and Deutsche TelekomCOMPANYRATINGOLD RATINGPTOLD PTProximus EURONEXT:PROX OverweightNeutralEUR 10.9EUR 7.8Telia OMXSTO:TELIA OverweightNeutralSEK 46.0SEK 40.0Telenor OSL:TEL NeutralOverweightNOK170.0NOK 185.0KPN EURONEXT:KPN NeutralOverweightEUR 4.6EUR 5.0Eutelsat EURONEXT:ETL NeutralUnderweightEUR 1.9EUR 2.8 Sunrise SIX:SUNN UnderweightNeutralCHF 37.0CHF 46.0SES EURONEXT:SESG Overweightn.a.EUR 10n.a.