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BT Group has delivered a mixed Q1 2026 trading update, with revenue pressures offset by continued network expansion and customer experience improvements. For the quarter ended 30 June 2025, reported and adjusted revenue fell 3% year-over-year (yoy) to £4.88bn – a figure of £4.33bn for the UK only, once “International revenue” is stripped out – whilst adjusted EBITDA dipped slightly by 1% to £2.05bn.
The revenue decline was primarily driven by weaker handset sales in BT’s Consumer division (continuing the trend reported in its FY25 results, see Sales dip but profit inches up for BT in FY25) and persistent challenges in international trading, though these were partially mitigated by FTTP growth in Openreach (a sixth consecutive quarter of 1m+ premises reached, on track to deliver 5m in FY26) and recent price increases. Pre-tax profit dropped 10% to £468m, impacted by higher net finance costs and increased depreciation and amortisation.
Performance across divisions remained uneven. Openreach continued its growth trajectory with revenue up 1% to £1.57bn (EBITDA up 5% to £1.07bn), benefiting from strong demand for fibre connectivity. However, the Business segment saw revenue (down 6% to £1.80bn) and EBITDA (down 9% to £344m) fall, as corporate and public sector spending remained subdued – continuing the challenging trends highlighted in recent quarters (see BT dips in Q3 as transformation continues). Consumer revenue declined 3% to £2.33bn and EBITDA down 3% to £636m, affected by the seasonal impact of price changes and softer handset demand.
Despite near-term pressures, BT's transformation programme continues to deliver: Customer satisfaction improved markedly, with Group Net Promoter Score rising 5.6 points year-on-year to 30.4; and infrastructure rollout accelerated, with full fibre broadband now reaching over 19m premises and 5G coverage extending to 87% of the UK population.
CEO Allison Kirkby struck an optimistic tone, emphasising “strong customer demand for next-generation broadband” and BT's market-leading network investment. The company reconfirmed all FY26 guidance metrics (including adjusted EBITDA of £8.2-8.3bn and group revenue of approximately £20bn (flat from FY25), suggesting that the company is expecting to reap the benefits in its network investment more in terms of growth from FY27 onwards.
Posted by: Craig Wentworth at 10:00
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