Air Liquide lifts half-year revenue and profit – shares decline

Margin development and cost-cutting program

Operating margin in the half year rose by 0.2 percentage points compared with the prior-year figure of 20.7 percent. A cost-cutting program contributed to this. Over the period from 2022 to 2027, it is expected to increase by a total of 5.6 percentage points. The austerity drive is also intended to help here.

For the current year 2026, Air Liquide CEO Francois Jackow wants to push operating margin – which stood at 20.7 percent the previous year – up by one percentage point. Accordingly, Air Liquide CEO Francois Jackow aims to increase adjusted profit in the current year at stable exchange rates.

Meanwhile, the group confirmed its targets. Order intake reached a record high of six billion euros, indicating continued robust demand in the industrial gases business.

Reaction on the stock market

On the stock market, however, the results were received cautiously. Most recently, the share lost around three percent to 171.82 euros, making it the worst performer in the French leading index CAC 40. Since its low of just under 141 euros at the beginning of the year, the stock has gained roughly a quarter in value.

According to Chetan Udeshi of U.S. bank JPMorgan, the figures were largely in line with expectations. Given the share's strong price performance since the start of the year, this could in his view now trigger profit-taking.

Outlook on Linde and competition

Attention on the market also turned to competitor Linde: rival Linde is set to release its quarterly figures this Friday. Analysts at various houses had recently rated Linde predominantly positively: Bernstein Research rated the stock "Outperform" on May 7, 2026, Jefferies & Company Inc. "Buy" on May 4, 2026, DZ BANK "Hold" on May 6, 2026, and UBS AG "Buy" on June 16, 2026.

Air Liquide is one of the world's largest manufacturers of industrial and medical gases. Headquartered in Paris, the company serves customers in healthcare, electronics, and energy and has for years been investing in expanding its production network as well as in acquisitions to support growth independent of economic cycles.

Looking ahead to the second half of the year, margin targets and the cost-cutting program remain the central levers. Should the company achieve the targeted one-percentage-point increase in operating margin, Air Liquide would further solidify the upper end of its self-set 2022-to-2027 trajectory.