Renault Group grew its third-quarter 2026 revenue by 1.5% to €11.6 billion, even though vehicle sales fell 6.0%. The company kept its full-year targets: an operating margin of around 5.5% and automotive free cash flow of around €1.0 billion. It says a jump in electric car sales and a tight focus on pricing offset weaker volumes.

Revenue holds up while volumes slip

Renault Group’s revenue for July to September came to €11,596 million. That is 1.5% more than in the same quarter of 2025, or 1.4% more at constant exchange rates. The automotive business brought in €9,835 million, flat year-on-year and down 0.2% at constant exchange rates. Mobilize Financial Services, the group’s finance arm (formerly RCI Bank and Services), grew its revenue by 11.0% to €1,761 million.

Over the first nine months, group revenue reached €41.8 billion, up 7.1% (+7.6% at constant exchange rates). Automotive revenue grew 6.6% to €36.6 billion and Mobilize Financial Services grew 11.0% to €5.2 billion.

Lower volumes took 5.9 percentage points off automotive revenue in the quarter. Several factors made up for this:

  • Sales to partners (+4.9 points): mainly the Geely partnership in Brazil, where Renault now distributes and, since September, builds Geely vehicles. The Indian plant RNAIPL, consolidated since August 2025, also added €165 million.
  • Product mix (+2.3 points): linked to the changeover from the Clio V to the Clio VI, the Master and Trafic vans, and electric vehicles.
  • Pricing (+1.1 points): price increases in international markets to cover currency effects, partly offset by price pressure in Europe.
  • Geographic mix (+0.5 points): stronger sales in France and Germany and less exposure to Argentina.

An “other” effect of -3.1 points mostly came from stock levels at Renault Retail Group, the company’s own dealer network, returning to normal after an unusually low point at the end of June.

Electric sales jump

Group sales fell 6.0% to 497,799 vehicles in the third quarter. Over nine months they fell 2.2% to 1,662,222 units. Electric cars were the bright spot. EV sales rose 84.7% in the quarter, and their share of passenger car sales climbed 12.2 points to 25.8%. Counting hybrids and plug-in hybrids, electrified models made up 54.9% of the group’s passenger car sales in the quarter.

Three brands, three different stories

Renault sold 1,178,946 vehicles in the first nine months, up 1.1%, which the company says makes it Europe’s second-largest brand. Third-quarter sales fell 2.9% worldwide to 349,901 units but rose 4.6% in Europe. In Europe, 68.0% of the brand’s passenger cars sold by the end of September were electrified, and the company says the Twingo E-Tech electric has passed almost 26,000 sales. Renault sold 192,367 vans in Europe over nine months, up 8.1% in a market that grew 1.1%.

Dacia had a harder time. Nine-month sales fell 9.7% to 471,007 units, and third-quarter sales were down 12.8% at 144,175, partly against strong 2025 figures. The brand puts this down to a changeover in its models and powertrains while European demand moves quickly towards electrified cars. It also points to growing competition from Chinese brands, especially in the C-segment where the Bigster competes. The Sandero is still the best-selling car to private buyers in Europe, according to Dacia.

Alpine kept growing quickly. Registrations reached 12,269, up 65.6%, which is already more than in the whole of 2025. The A290 accounted for 8,618 of these. The A390 has added almost 1,800 registrations since the start of the year.

Value over volume

Renault Group has focused on more profitable sales. In Europe, sales to private buyers rose 5.0% in the quarter, and their share of sales rose 4.6 points to 64.8%. Short-term rental and demonstrator sales fell 18.0%. The group says its cars’ resale values are 5 to 13 points above the market average.

Stock stood at 532,000 vehicles on 30 September: 312,000 at independent dealers and 220,000 held by the group. Renault expects stock to finish 2026 near the bottom of its 525,000–550,000 target range. The European order book covered around two months of future sales.

“Renault Group delivered resilient Q3 revenue, once again demonstrating the strength and agility of our operating model.” – Duncan Minto, Chief Financial Officer of Renault Group

Guidance confirmed despite higher costs

Renault Group expects a full-year operating margin of around 5.5% of revenue and automotive free cash flow of around €1.0 billion. It still forecasts a slight margin improvement in the second half compared with the first. However, the usual seasonal boost is expected to be smaller than in past years because of higher raw material costs and inflation.

The group is relying on new models in the second half of the year, all of them electrified: the new Megane E-Tech electric, the Trafic Van E-Tech electric and the Duster E-Tech hybrid from Renault, plus the Sandero Hybrid, the new Spring and the Striker from Dacia. With these models, Dacia now offers only electrified cars.

Key figures: Renault Group Q3 2026

  • Group revenue: €11,596 million (+1.5%)
  • Automotive revenue: €9,835 million (stable)
  • Mobilize Financial Services revenue: €1,761 million (+11.0%)
  • Group sales: 497,799 vehicles (-6.0%)
  • EV share of passenger car sales: 25.8% (+12.2 points)
  • 2026 guidance: operating margin around 5.5%, automotive free cash flow around €1.0 billion

First European deliveries of the Dacia Sandero Hybrid, new Spring and Striker are due in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Source: media.renaultgroup.com