Zara soars in Madrid: celebrates accounts above expectations

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Inditex is on a roll as it soars on the Madrid Stock Exchange and posts one of the best performances in Europe. The owner of the Zara brand released its first-quarter results this morning, which saw net profit rise 5.4% year-on-year to EUR 1.38 billion. Sales rose 5.8% to EUR 8.7 billion; at constant exchange rates they were up 8.8%. Gross profit increased by 6.9 % to EUR 5.4 billion, the gross margin reached 61.2 % (+67 basis points compared to Q1 2025). Ebitda saw a 7.3% increase to EUR 2.6 billion, ebit rose 7% to EUR 1.8 billion, and pre-tax profit grew 5.5% to EUR 1.8 billion.

 For the fiscal year 2025, the board of directors will propose to the shareholders' meeting a dividend of EUR 1.75 per share, consisting of an ordinary dividend of EUR 1.20 and an extraordinary dividend of EUR 0.55 per share. Customers, the release points out, continue to welcome the spring-summer collections: between 1 May and 1 June 2026, in-store and online sales at constant exchange rates increased by 11.5% compared to the same period in 2025, aided by calendar effects. Inditex also points out that it has planned around EUR 2.3 billion of investments in 2026, in particular to increasingly integrate artificial intelligence (AI) within its operations. While with regard to possible impacts from the geopolitical environment, the management reiterated that its 'flexibility', combined with close sourcing, allows it to adapt and react quickly to market changes and turbulence.

According to Bernstein analysts, Inditex's update shows that the company is posting a very strong performance. In particular, according to the experts, expectations for the second quarter could be revised upwards, as the market consensus currently forecasts a 7.8% growth in sales. On the same wavelength are the analysts of Rbc Capital Markets, who describe the results achieved as 'solid', dwelling in particular on the fact that the Spanish group, in the period from 1 May to 1 June, saw a growth in turnover of 11.5% at constant exchange rates compared to the same period of the previous year. The figure, say the brokers, appears solid, even if it is partly favoured by favourable calendar effects.

Overall, the group's results for the first quarter ending 30 April were slightly above market expectations.