Rexel Q2 2026 Results: Sales Growth Accelerates, Full-Year Guidance Raised

Rexel Q2 2026 Results

Rexel, the France-based multichannel distributor of electrical products, reported an acceleration in sales growth through the second quarter and raised its full-year 2026 guidance, as strength in North American data centers and European electrification demand more than offset a soft UK market and adverse currency effects.

H1 2026 sales reached €9,989m, up 2.2% on a reported basis and up 5.1% on a constant, same-day basis — a rate that has now accelerated for three consecutive quarters. Q2 sales alone came in at €5,252m, up 6.7% on a same-day basis, with the group recording positive volume growth in every region for the first time since Q2 2023, including a return to growth in Europe.

Data centers and electrification drive the acceleration

Growth was led by two themes: value-added services tied to data-center buildouts in North America, and electrification/energy-transition solutions in Europe. North America, 47% of group sales, grew 7.8% on a same-day basis in Q2, with US data center sales — now 9% of US sales — more than doubling year-on-year and industrial automation up 15%. Backlog crossed $2bn in the US and CAD1bn in Canada, both up roughly 25-30% versus end-March.

Europe, 46% of sales, grew 4.4% on a same-day basis in Q2, a sharp step-up from 0.6% in Q1, as volumes turned positive and non-cable pricing returned to a 1-2% range after more than two years of pressure. Energy-transition products (22% of European sales) rose about 15%, aided by heat waves and higher energy prices lifting solar, HVAC and EV-charging demand. France (+6.3%) and Benelux (+7.6%) led the region, while the UK remained the outlier, down 3.8% amid a prolonged downturn. Asia-Pacific, the smallest region at 7% of sales, grew 17.0% in Q2, driven by solar in Australia and industrial automation in China and India.

Selling prices also turned more favourable across all three regions, contributing alongside volumes to the sequential acceleration; cable prices benefited from higher copper costs passed through to customers.

Margin up 40bps to 6.2%, guidance raised

Current adjusted EBITA margin reached 6.2% in H1, up from 5.8% a year earlier, helped by the sales drop-through, cost-savings execution and accretive portfolio effects from recent M&A. Reported current EBITA margin was 6.4%, which includes a non-recurring positive copper effect. Productivity reached a record 4%, based on the gap between volume growth and average headcount, while opex investment in growth initiatives — chiefly digital — was a modest 10bps drag.

Operating income rose to €605m from €506m a year earlier, including exceptional items such as restructuring and disposal gains. Net income increased 31% to €342m, while recurring net income — stripping out the copper effect and other one-offs — rose 12.6% to €347m. Free cash flow before interest and tax nearly doubled to €247m, a 37% conversion rate of EBITDAaL, up from 21% a year ago, helped by a smaller working-capital outflow. Net debt rose €690m over the half to €3,322m, reflecting €398m of acquisition spending, €353m of dividends and seasonal working-capital needs, leaving leverage at 2.4x.

Three North American acquisitions this year

Rexel continued to build out its advanced-services and industrial-automation platform in North America, completing three acquisitions in 2026: TC 360 in Canada (April), Revere Electrical Supply in Illinois (May, an authorised Rockwell Automation reseller with c. $330m of 2025 turnover), and Dee Electronics in Iowa (completed July 10, c. $50m of sales, an assembly and supply-chain specialist serving OEM customers that will join Rexel USA’s Advanced Services unit).

Outlook raised for the second time this year

Citing accelerating momentum, a record backlog and improved visibility, Rexel lifted its full-year 2026 targets: same-day sales growth of c. 5%, versus 3-5% previously, current adjusted EBITA margin of at least 6.2%, versus “c. 6.2%” previously, and free cash flow conversion above 65%, unchanged. Medium-term Axelerate 2028 targets — 5-8% sales growth including 2-3% from M&A, EBITA margin above 7%, and 65% average FCF conversion — were reaffirmed.

“Rexel delivered particularly good results in H1 2026 and I would like to thank all of our teams throughout the world for having made this possible,” said chief executive Guillaume Texier. “In an unstable geopolitical environment, we have made the most of the positioning we have built over the years on secular trends in electrification, both in Europe and in North America, to deliver top line growth above our initial expectations. This momentum, combined with selling price increases and disciplined cost management, drove very solid profitability at 6.2%. This set of results, as well as the visibility we have on the rest of the year, lead us to upgrade our 2026 full year guidance both for top line and profitability.”

Key figures

  • H1 2026 sales: €9,989m (+2.2% reported; +5.1% same-day)
  • Q2 2026 sales: €5,252m (+6.1% reported; +6.7% same-day)
  • Current adjusted EBITA margin: 6.2% (H1 2025: 5.8%)
  • Operating income: €605m (H1 2025: €506m)
  • Net income: €342m, +30.8%; recurring net income: €347m, +12.6%
  • Free cash flow before interest and tax: €247m (H1 2025: €127m)
  • Net debt: €3,322m; leverage 2.4x EBITDAaL
  • 2026 guidance: same-day sales growth c. 5% (previously 3-5%); current adjusted EBITA margin ≥ 6.2% (previously c. 6.2%); FCF conversion > 65% (unchanged)

Rexel is a Paris-listed (Euronext, ticker RXL) worldwide distributor of electrical products and services, operating 1,876 branches in 17 countries with 26,306 employees. Group sales were €19.4bn in 2025.

Source: Rexel press release, Q2 sales & H1 2026 results, 27 July 2026.

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