October 26, 2026/Cordros Report
TotalEnergies Marketing Nigeria Plc (TOTAL) published its Q3-26 unaudited results after the close of business on Friday (23 October), reporting an EPS of NGN2.63 (vs loss per share of NGN33.13 in Q3-25). Thus, 9M-26 EPS printed NGN17.21 (vs loss per share of NGN41.54 in 9M-25). The performance was driven by revenue growth (+33.1% y/y), EBITDA margin expansion (+492bps y/y to 3.8%) and a 40.2% y/y decline in net finance cost during the quarter.
Revenue grew by 33.1% y/y (9M-26: +12.6% y/y), driven by broad based growth across its business segments. Network (+33.0% y/y | 54.0% of revenue) and General Trade (+40.7% y/y | 37.0% of revenue) led the growth, while Aviation (+9.4% y/y | 9.0% of revenue) recorded a more modest increase. We attribute the performance partly to higher product prices amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which supported global crude oil prices and domestic petroleum product prices. Dissecting by product type, petroleum products (71.2% of revenue) sales grew by 46.0% y/y, while lubricants & others (28.8% of revenue) increased by 9.4% y/y. On a q/q basis, group revenue declined by 11.7%.
Gross margin contracted by 46bps y/y to 10.1% in Q3-26 (9M-26: +67bps y/y to 11.9%), reflecting the faster pace of cost of sales growth (+33.8% y/y) compared to revenue. Specifically, the results show increases in net changes in inventory of lubes, greases and refined products (+34.8% y/y) and transportation costs (+1.5% y/y), consistent with elevated crude oil prices, while customs duties declined by 4.0% y/y.
Consequently, EBITDA margin expanded by 492bps y/y to 3.8% (9M-26: +223bps y/y to 4.4%), further supported by the 10.1% y/y decline in operating expenses and a 173.5% y/y increase in other income to NGN3.87 billion. The decline in OPEX was mainly driven by a 13.6% y/y decline in administrative expenses. The increase in other income primarily reflects a 96.6% y/y increase in net foreign exchange gain.
Further down, net finance costs declined by 40.2% y/y to NGN3.33 billion in Q3-26 (9M-26: -36.6% y/y to NGN11.15 billion), reflecting the 45.6% y/y decline in finance cost amid a 76.1% y/y decline in finance income. The lower finance cost was due to a 50.5% y/y decrease in interest on bank overdrafts as overdraft declined to NGN59.26 billion (9M-25: NGN84.67 billion).
Overall, the company’s profit before tax rebounded to NGN1.31 billion in Q3-26 (vs loss before tax of NGN10.23 billion in Q3-25). Meanwhile, profit after tax settled at NGN894.19 million after accounting for tax expense of NGN415.44 million. For 9M-26, PBT settled at NGN8.02 billion (vs loss before tax of NGN11.92 billion in 9M-25), while PAT printed NGN5.84 billion (vs loss after tax of NGN14.10 billion in 9M-25).
Comment: TOTAL’s Q3-26 earnings declined by 76.3% q/q, reflecting an 11.7% q/q decline in revenue and a 187bps q/q contraction in gross margin to 10.1%. However, earnings improved y/y from a loss in Q3-25, as lower operating expenses, higher foreign exchange gain and reduced net finance costs more than offset the weaker gross profit contribution. Looking ahead, we expect TOTAL to end the year profitably as higher product pricing translates to revenue growth, while strong operating efficiency and lower finance costs continue to support earnings. However, sustained pressure on gross margins could temper earnings growth over the remainder of the year. Our estimates are under review.
