Telstra lifts earnings and dividend, expands buy-back for 1H26

The Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price is in focus today after Australia’s largest telecom delivered a strong first-half FY26 performance, with group underlying EBITDA rising across all major business lines and the interim dividend increasing to 10.5 cents per share.

What did Telstra Group report?

• Underlying EBITDA growth across Mobiles, Fixed Consumer & Small Business, InfraCo Fixed, and Amplitel businesses
• Mobile services revenue up 5.6% for the half, supported by higher ARPU and customer growth
• Group cash EBIT grew by 14% compared to the prior corresponding period
• Underlying operating expenses were reduced by $179 million, down 2.4%
• Interim dividend lifted to 10.5 cents per share (90.5% franked, was 9.5 cps fully franked 1H25)
• On-market share buy-back increased from up to $1 billion to up to $1.25 billion

What else do investors need to know?

Telstra says the interim dividend increase aligns with its Capital Management Framework and reflects strong cash earnings. The company also completed $637 million of its buy-back in the half, citing a robust balance sheet as the foundation for raising the buy-back target.

Management reports solid progress on the Connected Future 30 strategy, with positive operating leverage of 3.1 percentage points driven by disciplined cost control and efficiency. The company’s mobile segment remains a key growth engine.

What did Telstra Group management say?

Telstra CEO Vicki Brady said:

We delivered ongoing growth in earnings, reflecting momentum across our business, strong cost control and disciplined capital management.

What’s next for Telstra Group?

Looking ahead, Telstra is tightening its underlying EBITDA after leases (EBITDAaL) guidance for FY26 to between $8.2 billion and $8.4 billion, with guidance for other metrics unchanged. The company says it will continue to prioritise value delivery for shareholders and customers through its Connected Future 30 strategy.

Management is focused on growing core business cash flow, maintaining a disciplined approach to investment, and pursuing sustainable growth in dividends, underpinned by ongoing efficiency.

Telstra Group share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Telstra shares have risen 27%, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which has risen 7% over the same period.

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The post Telstra lifts earnings and dividend, expands buy-back for 1H26 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.