
Satellite group SES beats forecasts as defence spending rises in Europe
"We have a robust pipeline of Government opportunities supported by increased defence spending in Europe," CEO Abdel Al-Saleh said in a statement.
SES recently completed its $3.1 billion acquisition of rival Intelsat, aiming to position itself as a key European competitor to Elon Musk's Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper alongside French peer Eutelsat.
It has forecasted 1.8 billion euros in annual operating profit for the newly-merged entity, and recently appointed David Broadbent, formerly with Intelsat, to lead the combined government and defence divisions.
The Luxembourg-based company signed 690 million euros ($789.15 million) worth of new contracts in the first half of 2025, with a gross backlog of 4.2 billion euros at the end of the period.
Its total revenue reached 469 million euros in the second quarter, ahead of analysts' 464 million euro forecast provided by SES.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at 241 million euros, which also beat market forecast of 232 million euros.
($1 = 0.8744 euros)
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CNA
2 days ago
- CNA
Mistral in talks with VC firms, MGX to raise funds at $10 billion valuation, FT reports
French artificial intelligence startup Mistral is in talks with investors, venture capital firms and Abu Dhabi's MGX to raise $1 billion at a valuation of $10 billion, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. The company launched in June Europe's first AI reasoning model, which uses logical thinking to create a response, as it tries to keep pace with American and Chinese rivals at the forefront of AI development. The funding would accelerate the commercial rollout of Mistral's Le Chat chatbot and support continued development of its large language models, the report said. MGX and Mistral did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. The startup raised 600 million euros in a Series B funding round that valued the company at 5.8 billion euros last year. Industry observers consider Mistral as Europe's best-positioned AI company to rival Silicon Valley leaders, though the French firm has yet to achieve comparable market traction or revenue scale.


CNA
2 days ago
- CNA
Djokovic becomes a part-owner of Ligue 2 club Le Mans
Tennis great Novak Djokovic has become a part-owner of French Ligue 2 club Le Mans FC with former Formula 1 drivers Felipe Massa and Kevin Magnussen also acquiring stakes, the newly promoted club announced on Friday. The investment is led by Brazilian group OutField, an international consortium co-founded by Pedro Olivera, and includes Georgios Frangulis, CEO of global health-food brand OakBerry. "Djokovic, the most successful player in history, whose mental strength and unique approach will bring considerable added value," the club said in a statement. "Massa (15 seasons in Formula 1) and Magnussen (10 seasons), who will help create a bridge between football and motorsport – a distinctive strength of the Le Mans brand." Le Mans begin their Ligue 2 campaign on August 9, away at Guingamp.


CNA
2 days ago
- CNA
Exclusive-Prosus set to win EU nod for $4.74 billion Just Eat deal, sources say
BRUSSELS :Dutch technology investor Prosus is set to win EU antitrust approval for its 4.1 billion euro ($4.7 billion) bid for Just Eat Takeaway, after agreeing to sell down its stake in Delivery Hero, people with direct knowledge of the matter said. Amsterdam-headquartered Prosus, which is majority owned by South Africa's Naspers, announced the deal in February, banking on its artificial intelligence capability to boost Just Eat Takeaway, Europe's biggest meal delivery company. Prosus last month offered to incrementally sell down its 27.4 per cent stake in Delivery Hero and to give up its board seat to address EU competition concerns, other people familiar with the matter had told Reuters. Delivery Hero and Just Eat Takeaway compete with each other in Austria, Bulgaria, Italy, Poland and Spain. The European Commission, which is now seeking market feedback to Prosus' offer and will decide on the deal by August 11, declined to comment. Prosus also declined to comment. The deal would make Prosus the world's fourth-largest food delivery company after Meituan, DoorDash and Uber, according to ING analysts. Delivery Hero and its Spanish unit Glovo were fined 329 million euros by the EU antitrust watchdog in June for taking part in a cartel which included an agreement to divide up markets among themselves and not to poach each other's employees. ($1 = 0.8658 euros)