Philips CEO Warns About 2026 Growth Target, Stock Drops

Koninklijke Philips NV (NYSE:PHG) shares fell sharply on Thursday, marking their most significant single-day drop since February.

• PHG stock is showing notable weakness. See the trading setup here.

The move comes after CEO Roy Jakobs delivered cautious remarks at Citi's Global Healthcare Conference.

Reuters, summarizing the event, reported that Philips expected organic sales growth to improve from 2% this year to 2026, but was "unlikely" to meet the 4.5% consensus forecast.

Citing Citi analysts, Reuters added that the company reiterated its goal to improve margins in 2026 but warned that tariff headwinds next year are expected almost to double.

Also Read: Philips Ultrasound Devices Deemed Adulterated Over Manufacturing And Oversight Lapses

Philips also pointed to a similar global hospital capital spending environment in 2026 compared with 2025, with strong U.S. demand, solid Europe and international markets, and muted conditions in China, Citi analysts added.

Philips Outlook

In a statement on Thursday, Philips reaffirmed that its 2026 outlook will be issued as planned on February 10, 2026, in line with the company's previously communicated schedule.

As previously guided, the company expects continued performance improvement with sequential comparable sales growth, expanded margins (despite tariff headwinds), and strong cash flow. 

The company expects comparative sales growth to accelerate sequentially in 2026 towards mid-single-digit growth in line with the current trajectory and supported by continued solid order momentum.

Philips has not released any early view of its forthcoming guidance.

At the industry conference, Philips confirmed that it expects to accelerate towards mid-single-digit growth sequentially.

The company noted that this expectation does not mean it will double its growth every single year on its multi-year trajectory.

Philips reported third-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share of 42 cents (or 0.36 euros), beating the consensus of 37 cents.

The Dutch healthcare technology group reported quarterly sales of $5.03 billion (4.302 billion euros), in line with the consensus.

PHG Price Action: Koninklijke Philips shares were down 5.33% at $26.54 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Read Next:

• Snowflake Stock Slides After Q3 Beat — Analysts Raise Targets Anyway

Photo by Mats Wiklund via Shutterstock