Ericsson Q2 Financials Briefing
Ericsson Schedules Release of Q2 2026 Financial Report and Live Executive Briefing
Ericsson will release its second-quarter 2026 financial results at approximately 7:00 AM CEST on July 14, 2026, according to PR Newswire. President and CEO Börje Ekholm — in what is expected to be one of his final earnings appearances before handing over to successor Per Narvinger in October — and CFO Lars Sandström will host a live webcast at 9:00 AM CEST to field questions from analysts and media.
The report arrives at a pivotal moment. Ericsson faces a stagnant 5G equipment market, significant currency headwinds, and a major leadership transition — all while analysts have slashed their 2026 earnings forecasts by nearly 29%, according to Simply Wall St.
Ekholm's Final Lap Before Handing Over the Keys
Börje Ekholm has led Ericsson since 2017. He will step down as CEO in October 2026, with Per Narvinger — currently Head of Business Area Networks — taking the top job. Ekholm recently said that since his arrival, Ericsson has gone from crisis to a company "driving the transformation of mobile networks," according to News18. He will stay on in an advisory role until June 2027.
The board's choice of an internal candidate signals a desire for stability, not a sharp change of course, according to Telecoms.com. Narvinger is expected to stick with the current "Enterprise and AI" strategy while facing pressure to revive flat hardware sales. David Hammarwall will step into Narvinger's current Networks role on October 1, 2026.
Analysts Cut Forecasts After a Bruising Q1 Miss
Q1 2026 was rough on paper. Reported sales fell 10% due to currency swings, though organic growth came in at 6%. Ericsson also booked SEK 3.8 billion in restructuring charges in just those three months, according to Quartr. North American sales dropped 18% as operators worked through excess inventory.
Nineteen analysts have since cut their 2026 earnings-per-share estimate by 29%, down to roughly SEK 5.35, according to Simply Wall St. For Q2 specifically, the consensus sits at around $6.05 billion in revenue and $0.17 in EPS, per Investing.com. Morningstar rates the stock with "no moat" and a fair value of SEK 105, pointing to fierce competition from Nokia and Huawei.
5G Plateau Forces a Costly Bet on AI Networks
The global 5G rollout boom is fading. Management warned in January that the Radio Access Network market — Ericsson's core business — would stay "flattish" through 2026, according to Fierce Network. Global 5G subscriptions hit 3.1 billion in Q1 2026, with 162 million added in the quarter, per the Ericsson Mobility Report. But subscriber growth is not translating directly into new hardware orders.
To find new growth, Ericsson is pushing hard into "Agentic AI" and network APIs — tools that let operators charge more for smarter, programmable networks. The company spent 21% of its 2025 revenue on R&D to stay ahead of Chinese rivals, according to Frost & Sullivan. Ericsson also cut 1,600 jobs in Sweden — 12% of its domestic workforce — at the start of 2026 as part of a broader cost drive.
What to Watch on July 14: North America and the Buyback
The Q2 report drops in PDF format alongside the earnings numbers at 7:00 AM CEST. The webcast follows two hours later. A key number to watch is North American revenue recovery after Q1's 18% slide, according to Inside Towers. Any sign of operators restocking equipment would be a meaningful positive signal for the rest of 2026.
Also in focus is the SEK 15 billion — roughly $1.6 billion — share buyback program approved at the March AGM. Shareholders will watch for updates on its progress. The webcast will be available on demand after the live session ends, giving investors worldwide a chance to hear directly from Ekholm and Sandström, per Yahoo Finance.
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