Akwel: revenue down 14.4% in the third quarter, annual target maintained
Akwel's consolidated revenue fell 14.4% in the third quarter of 2026, to €188.4 million, while the decline reached 17.4% over the first nine months, to €603.4 million. The decline in the third quarter is therefore less pronounced than the year-to-date decline, including at constant scope and exchange rates: -14.7% versus -16.2%.
The automotive supplier based in Champfromier (Ain), which published these figures on November 5, 2026, maintained its forecast of an annual revenue decline of between 12% and 15%. However, it made this conditional on the evolution of competition among carmakers, at a time when the restructuring of the European market is weighing on its activity.
A largely organic decline, more pronounced in Europe
The currency effect remains marginal: it represents €0.6 million over the third quarter, which explains the small gap between the reported decline and the decline at constant scope and exchange rates. The contraction in activity is therefore essentially organic, both over the quarter and year to date.
The group states that the decline remains “particularly marked” in the European zone. It links this to the restructuring of the market: according to the press release, Chinese carmakers “have almost doubled their market share since the beginning of 2026” and overtake Japanese carmakers for the first time.
According to the group, this growth comes at the expense of established carmakers. The press release thus establishes a direct link between the breakthrough of Chinese brands in Europe and the decline in activity of a supplier whose exposure is concentrated on these historical carmakers.
Almost all product lines down, Tools up
The Products and Functions activity, which accounts for the bulk of revenue, fell 17.7% over nine months, to €586.5 million. The Pollution Control line recorded the steepest decline (-64.1%), still penalized by the halt in production of SCR Series tanks.
Other lines declined to varying degrees: -21.6% for Fuel, -18.7% for Air, -6.5% for Mechanisms, -6.3% for Regulation and -1.3% for Cooling. The decline therefore affects products linked to combustion engines as well as other functions.
Only the Tools activity grew, by 7.6%, to €11.8 million. Its amount remains small compared with the €586.5 million of the Products and Functions activity, so it cannot offset the decline in the product lines.
Adjusted cash down over the quarter, annual forecast confirmed
Consolidated net cash excluding the impact of lease obligations stood at €98.4 million as of September 30, 2026. Adding €30.1 million in term deposits, adjusted cash reached €128.5 million, down €4.7 million compared with June 30, a change accompanied by an increase in working capital requirements.
Capital expenditure amounted to €3.6 million in the third quarter. Looking ahead, the annual decline range communicated in previous publications “remains current”, but remains “conditional on the rapidly changing competitive environment among carmakers”, according to the group, which closed fiscal 2025 with revenue of €938.3 million.
With a 17.4% decline over nine months, beyond the lowest end of this range, the target arithmetically implies a fourth quarter with a smaller decline than the year-to-date figure. The third quarter has already marked a first slowdown in the decline.
