Eutelsat Secures FAA Clearance for Gulfstream Inflight Internet, Yet Shares Remain Under Pressure
Published on 07/01/2026 at 18:26 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
Eutelsat has gained a foothold in the ultra-exclusive private-jet market after the US Federal Aviation Administration certified its OneWeb satellite network for select Gulfstream aircraft. The approval, granted in tandem with Gogo’s new Galileo-HDX terminal, covers the G650 and G650ER models and gives the Franco-British operator a direct pipeline to the business-aviation segment. The move is a tangible step toward monetising the billions sunk into the OneWeb merger, with the broader LEO-powered inflight connectivity market estimated to be worth $120 billion by 2030.
But investors have not exactly greeted the news with euphoria. The stock is stuck at roughly €2.47–2.49, a whisper above where it ended the previous session. That meagre uptick masks a brutal recent slide: the shares have shed about 36% in the last 30 days alone and now trade 46% below the 52-week high of €4.62 reached in May. The 200-day moving average of €2.62 sits just overhead, a level the price has failed to reclaim.
The dichotomy between operational milestones and market sentiment runs deep. Eutelsat closed its 2025–26 financial year today, and the numbers tell a story of rapid transformation. Video revenues contracted almost 16% to €128 million in the third quarter, while LEO-service revenue jumped 47% to €62 million. Over the first half, LEO sales surged nearly 60% to €111 million, pushing connectivity-related income to 54% of total operating revenue — a share that was unthinkable just two years ago. Management is targeting 50% LEO growth for the full year, with gross investment holding steady at roughly €900 million.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Eutelsat?
Cleaning up the balance sheet has been a mixed bag. A plan to sell passive ground infrastructure to EQT Infrastructure VI for around €550 million collapsed in January 2026. Yet a €1.5 billion bond issue in March gave the company breathing room: net debt stood at €1.3 billion at end-December 2025, down by more than €1.3 billion from the previous June. The net-debt-to-EBITDA ratio improved from 3.88x to 2.00x. Nonetheless, the target of 2.7x for the final reporting period has been revised up, reflecting the aborted asset sale.
Defence and broadcasting provide counterweights to the commercial pressures. On 15 June, Eutelsat signed the CENTAURE contract with the French defence ministry, a deal worth up to €350 million over eight years. The first firm tranche covers four years for €138 million, supplying LEO capacity to the French armed forces under the broader NEXUS framework agreement — itself valued at €1 billion. On the GEO side, Fransat, Eutelsat’s free-to-air platform, is broadcasting the 2026 World Cup in 4K UHD via the Eutelsat-5-West-B satellite on channel 56 until 19 July. The message is clear: the legacy video infrastructure is not dead yet.
The competitive landscape remains punishing. EchoStar subsidiaries DISH DBS and DISH Wireless filed for bankruptcy on 30 June, dragged down by delayed spectrum sales and multibillion-dollar debt maturities. European rival OHB recently raised about €482 million in a capital increase, while SpaceX continues to expand Starlink at breakneck speed. Eutelsat must hold its ground in an industry that consumes capital voraciously.
Further aircraft-type certifications are expected in the coming months, which could unlock more of the business-jet market. But the real test lies in the full-year results due soon. Only then will it become clear whether the 50% LEO growth target and the 2.7x leverage benchmark were actually met — and whether the stock’s nosedive reflects short-term noise or deeper structural scepticism.
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