Air Liquide posts slight Q1 beat, confirms margin guidance

(Reuters) - French industrial gases supplier Air Liquide confirmed its margin outlook and reported slightly higher-than-expected revenue for the first quarter on Thursday, driven by solid performances in its healthcare and electronics divisions.

The company, which supplies gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen to factories and hospitals, said its revenue rose 1.7% on a comparable basis to 7.03 billion euros ($7.97 billion) in the first quarter of 2025.

The company reiterated its ambition to improve its operating margin and to deliver recurring net profit growth at constant exchange rates in 2025, despite the uncertain environment.

It also confirmed its ambition to increase its margin by 460 basis points, excluding the energy impact, over the 2022-2026 period.

Sales in Air Liquide's gas and services business, which represent 97% of the group's sales, grew +.8% on a comparable basis, while healthcare and electronics sales rose 5.3% and 3.6% respectively.

Analysts polled by Vara Research were expecting quarterly sales of 7.00 billion euros on average.

($1 = 0.8822 euros)

(Reporting by Olivier Cherfan; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Kim Coghill)