The Service Stream Ltd (ASX: SSM) share price is in focus after the company reported an 18.4% jump in NPAT-A to $81.1 million, and 11.8% higher operational EBITDA for FY26.

What did Service Stream report?

• Group revenue of $2.48 billion
• EBITDA from operations of $163.4 million, up 11.8% on last year
• NPAT-A of $81.1 million, up 18.4% from FY25
• EBITDA-A margin improved to 6.6%
• Net cash balance increased to $80.7 million
• Final fully franked dividend of 3.5 cents, taking FY26 dividend to 6.5 cents (up 18.2%)

What else do investors need to know?

Service Stream successfully mobilised several new contracts in Defence, Water, and Industrial sectors, helping boost its contracted work-in-hand to $8.2 billion (excluding extension options). Cash generation remained strong, with a 24.9% increase in operating cash flow and an EBITDA-to-cash conversion rate above 113%.

Availability of skilled staff supported new contract launches and ongoing growth, while inflationary pressures were managed effectively via operational improvements and contract terms.

What did Service Stream management say?

Managing Director Leigh Mackender said:

Financial year 2026 was another period of strong and positive performance with Service Stream delivering improved financial results, headlined by enhanced group margins, double-digit growth in EBITDA-A and NPAT-A, generation of exceptional cashflows and a strengthening of the Group’s net cash balance sheet. The business expanded its total addressable markets, successfully securing and mobilising several new contractual agreements across the defence, water and industrial sectors as it continues to diligently execute its value creation strategy.

What’s next for Service Stream?

Management expects earnings growth in FY27 on the back of improved quality of earnings, benefits from mobilising new contracts, and strong demand for infrastructure upgrades. The group says its scalable platform positions it well to capture further opportunities as clients invest in essential networks.

The board remains confident the company can take advantage of increased infrastructure spending and sees a robust pipeline of projects in critical sectors.

Service Stream share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Service Stream shares have risen 25%, outperforming the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO), which has risen 1% over the same period.

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The post Service Stream: Profit jumps and dividend lifted in FY26 results 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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.

The Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is in focus today as the company reported a 2% lift in half-year product sales revenue to US$2,620 million, but a 19% drop in statutory profit to US$355 million for the six months ended 30 June 2026. Directors declared an unfranked interim dividend of 11.6 US cents per share.

What did Santos report?

• Product sales revenue: US$2,620 million, up 2% year on year
• Statutory net profit after tax: US$355 million, down 19%
• Underlying profit: US$397 million, down 22%
• EBITDAX: US$1,555 million, down 12%
• Interim dividend: 11.6 US cents per share (unfranked), down 13%
• Operating free cash flow: US$378 million, down 65%

What else do investors need to know?

Santos delivered higher production volumes, mainly due to increased LNG output and the continued ramp-up of the Barossa and Pikka Phase 1 developments. Sales volumes rose by 1.7% to 48 million barrels of oil equivalent, helping offset the impact of lower realised LNG prices and higher depletion expenses.

Cash flow from operations fell sharply versus the prior period, reflecting increased commissioning costs at Barossa and Darwin LNG, higher third-party purchase costs, and the change in depreciation methodology to reflect 1P reserves rather than 2P.

The company’s major projects remain on track. Barossa has reached 97% of planned rates since the end of June, while Pikka Phase 1 in Alaska achieved first oil, with expectations for ramp-up to plateau production in the third quarter of 2026.

What’s next for Santos?

Santos has provided production guidance of 99 to 105 million barrels of oil equivalent and sales volume guidance of 102 to 108 million barrels for the full year 2026. The company expects key growth projects, including the Barossa and Pikka ramp-ups, to underpin higher production and support long-term performance.

Santos continues to progress its portfolio of decarbonisation initiatives, such as the Moomba and Bayu-Undan carbon capture projects. The company maintains its focus on reducing costs, improving asset reliability, and delivering project milestones to support its strategy.

Santos share price snapshot

The Santos share price is marginally outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) on a 12-month basis with a gain of 4.5%.

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The post Santos posts lower first-half profit as new LNG projects ramp up appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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.

CSL shares (ASX: CSL) surged as much as 18% on Tuesday, capping the biotech giant’s best single session in more than two decades.

The stock changed hands around $157.40.

That is an extraordinary move for a company of this size, and it becomes stranger still once you read the headline numbers.

CSL reported a net loss after tax of US$2.6 billion for FY26.

A record loss and a record rally, on the same morning.

So what did the market see that the headline missed?

Why CSL shares looked past a US$2.6 billion loss

The loss was not in any way an operating problem.

It came from US$7.1 billion in pre-tax impairments and a further US$799 million in restructuring costs, none of which involved cash leaving the business.

Most of that writedown was due to CSL Vifor intangibles and under-utilised property, plant, and equipment.

Investors had also been warned well in advance, because back in May the company flagged roughly US$5 billion of impairments alongside a cut to FY26 guidance.

Strip the one-offs away and the underlying picture was far steadier.

Underlying NPATA stood at US$3.1 billion, down just 2% on the prior year.

Revenue of US$15.8 billion slipped 1%, but still came in ahead of what most analysts had predicted.

Operating cash flow was a healthy US$3.5 billion.

Inside the FY26 result

CSL Behring remains the engine room of the business.

The plasma division generated US$11.4 billion in revenue, down 1%, while immunoglobulin sales held flat at US$6.2 billion.

That immunoglobulin line is a key pillar of the CSL bull case.

CSL Vifor lifted 3% to US$2.4 billion.

Seqirus was weak, with the influenza vaccine business shrinking 8% to US$2 billion.

In better news, CSL’s transformation program delivered US$176 million of cost savings during the year.

Management also committed US$1.5 billion to expanding plasma collection capacity across the United States.

The final dividend left the full-year payout unchanged at US$2.92 per share.

The guidance that drove the CSL share price craze

Here is where the enthusiasm came from.

CSL guided to underlying NPAT growth of approximately 5% in FY27.

Consensus had been sitting closer to 2%, so for a company that has spent 18 months walking its guidance backwards, an upgrade of any kind is a welcone plot twist.

Behring is expected to grow at a mid-single-digit rate, with immunoglobulins running in the mid-to-high single digits.

The offset is CSL Vifor, where revenue is tipped to fall around 25% as iron generics arrive.

Interim chief executive Gordon Naylor set the tone for this reset back in May.

Growth initiatives are working, but the financial benefits will take longer than previously anticipated to materialise.

Are CSL shares still worth a look?

Even after Tuesday’s surge, CSL shares remain down roughly 8% in 2026, and they still sit well below the highs they set a few years ago.

Investors should still be considering the bear case. The company is still operating without a permanent chief executive, Seqirus is shrinking, and the Vifor acquisition has now been written down heavily.

One guidance beat does not undo two years of disappointment.

Ahead of the result, my Foolish colleagues asked whether the healthcare giant could arrest the slide.

On the evidence of a single session, the answer is yes. However, sustaining this recovery is a very different question.

Foolish takeaway

Tuesday was not really a case of the market missing something.

It was a case of the market finally being handed something to hold onto: a reset year, a cleaner balance sheet, and guidance that beat expectations for the first time in a while.

The plasma business is still growing, and the cost program is still delivering.

Whether CSL shares can build on that will come down to execution over the next 12 months.

The post CSL shares just had their best day in 20 years. What did I just miss? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mark Verhoeven has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended CSL. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended CSL. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.