Second-quarter net profit of PLN 400.1 million topped the PAP Biznes consensus of PLN 391.8 million, and EBITDA came in essentially in line.

Revenue grew 10.5 percent year-on-year to PLN 9.53 billion, a touch below the PLN 9.56 billion analysts had penciled in. On paper, a clean, unremarkable print.

* EPS consensus derived from PAP Biznes’ net profit estimate of PLN 391.8m; not independently published as a per-share figure.

The number that actually matters sits below the headline: like-for-like sales growth (LFL, sales growth from stores open more than a year) cratered to just 0.3 percent in the second quarter alone, down from 8.8 percent a year earlier and from 4.4 percent as recently as the first quarter. EBITDA margin (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, as a share of revenue) kept falling too, to 6.98 percent from 7.54 percent.

For context, Biedronka — Dino’s much larger domestic rival — improved its own EBITDA margin by roughly 42 basis points in the same quarter. Dino is still opening stores at pace, but the core business is barely growing organically right now.

What strikes me is that the stock rose about 7,7 percent on a quarter this weak, which tells me expectations had already been reset lower than the headline numbers suggest — this reads more like relief than vindication.

There’s also a new, unpriced risk here: Poland’s competition authority opened an antitrust probe into Dino’s trucking arrangements in June, with a maximum fine of 10 percent of last year’s sales.

The next real test is Q3, when analysts expect the margin trend to start turning.

Revenue rose 27 percent year-over-year to $1.042 billion, beating the roughly $997 million analyst consensus, while EPS came in at $0.01 against a consensus loss of $0.05.

Operating income turned to $27 million, well ahead of the -$6 million the Street had modeled.

The number that actually matters here isn’t the top line — it’s transaction margin dollars, which grew 42 percent to $446 million and reached 42.8 percent of revenue, up more than 4.5 percentage points sequentially.

That’s Klarna’s own preferred yardstick, and it grew faster than revenue, which grew faster than GMV — exactly the sequencing management wants investors to see.

What buried all of it: full-year GMV guidance was cut to $149-151 billion from above $155 billion, and revenue guidance dropped to $4.08-4.16 billion from above $4.34 billion, with Q3 adjusted operating income guided at just $5-15 million as Klarna front-loads spending on new PSP launches ahead of peak season.

What strikes me is that this was, by the numbers, one of Klarna’s cleanest quarters yet — and the stock still fell about 19 percent.

That tells you the market is no longer grading Klarna on the quarter it just delivered; it’s grading the credibility of the guidance band itself, and a second guidance revision in three quarters isn’t building that credibility.

Germany’s retail slowdown, cited as the main driver of the cut, is the thing I’d watch into Q3.

Klarna’s stock debuted at 40 dollars before slumping to around 12 dollars within six months. It has since recovered to about 20 dollars, helped by positive news including a partnership with Apple that lets customers upgrade devices through a leasing scheme in the Klarna app. JPMorgan called the deal attractive for Klarna’s brand value.

The bank also cited Klarna’s US expansion, which brings longer, more profitable loans, potentially supporting annual revenue growth above 15 percent and margin expansion of roughly 15 percentage points by 2028.

JPMorgan forecasts second-quarter revenue of 992 million dollars, up 21 percent year-on-year, and gross merchandise value of 36.255 billion dollars, near the top of Klarna’s own guidance range, which it called conservative.

Of 25 analysts covering Klarna, 15 rate it buy and 10 hold, with an average price target of 23.27 dollars. Klarna reports second-quarter earnings on Tuesday, August 18.

The new structure introduces four tiers priced between 4.99 and 44.99 pounds a month, roughly 65 to 580 SEK. The top-tier card will be made of metal, mirroring Amex’s premium offering.

Klarna has also expanded member perks, adding benefits such as free minutes on Voi e-scooters on top of existing offers.

The move comes after a difficult year for Klarna on Wall Street since its listing on September 10, 2025, with shares down 52 percent.

In July, the company got a rare piece of good news when it was named leasing provider for Apple’s new Apple Upgrade program in the US, which Klarna said would boost its adjusted operating profit.

The analysts said the market picture for Billerud has become ”significantly more positive,” citing a low valuation combined with several near- and long-term catalysts that could give the stock a potential upside of 90 percent within three years.

SB1 pointed to peer SCA’s announced price increase of 100 euros per tonne for kraftliner cartonboard from September 1, alongside signs from competitors Metsä Board and Mondi of improved demand and pricing for containerboard products.

The broker also noted that while Mondi expects higher wood raw material costs in the third quarter due to a tighter Central European market, Billerud should face somewhat lower wood costs in the second half, giving it a clear cost advantage given that wood raw material accounts for 40 percent of operating costs.

Longer term, SB1 said Billerud benefits from the structural shift from plastic to fiber-based packaging, while its US graphic paper business continues to generate strong profits.

If its 2026-2028 forecasts hold and Billerud deploys its strong balance sheet more aggressively, SB1 estimates the stock could be worth 150 SEK within three years.

The fund now holds just 645,000 shares in the company.

The July sale follows earlier disposals of 2.8 million shares in June and more than 700,000 shares in May, meaning AP3 has offloaded nearly its entire EQT position over the summer.

The group announced on August 4 that it has acquired the compressed air business of 3C Industrial LLC, headquartered in Corpus Christi with branches in Houston, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin.

The 26-employee operation generated roughly SEK 108 million (USD 11 million) in revenue during 2025 and joins Compressor Technique’s service division. Terms weren’t disclosed.

It’s a small deal, but a familiar one: Compressor Technique alone completed nine similar bolt-on acquisitions in the first half of 2026, steadily widening its U.S. service footprint rather than chasing scale.

Investor A also ranks among the most widely held stocks, with over 100,000 owners.

Ownership does not necessarily track performance. Investor B has risen 23.8 percent this year and Investor A 22.5 percent, but several less-owned stocks have performed better: SSAB B is up 42.3 percent with just over 100,000 owners, and Volvo B has gained 23.5 percent with under half of Investor’s shareholder base.

Conversely, Axfood, down 15.7 percent, still retains over 100,000 owners, showing loyalty to familiar names.

Swedish banks and industrial firms dominate the top list, including Swedbank, Handelsbanken, Saab and Nibe.

Nvidia is the top foreign stock, with 106,000 owners despite gaining less than 2 percent, while Novo Nordisk has 103,000 owners and is up nearly 3 percent.

Żabka’s two largest shareholders — CVC’s Heket Topco (37.6 percent) and Partners Group’s PG Investment Company (10.0 percent) — have committed to sell their stakes.

Seven senior managers, including current CEO Tomasz Suchański and incoming CEO Tomasz Blicharski, also committed to sell their combined 9.6 percent stake, with several agreeing to reinvest part of the proceeds into Couche-Tard shares.

In total, commitments cover 57.2 percent of Żabka’s shares and voting rights.

The offer represents roughly a 9 percent premium to Thursday’s close of PLN 29.26.

The announcement comes six days after Seven & i Holdings walked away from its own investment talks, and just one day after Żabka’s H1 2026 earnings.

The acquired portfolio comprises a total of around 457,000 square meters of logistics space, which is currently fully let.