Compagnie de Saint-Gobain (LON:COD) told shareholders at its ordinary annual general meeting that it expects to continue pursuing profitable growth under its new Lead & Grow strategic plan, after reporting what management described as a strong 2025 performance in a mixed economic environment.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Benoit Bazin said the building materials group had completed its prior Grow & Impact 2021-2025 plan “very successfully,” citing average organic growth of 3% per year, €14 billion allocated to growth and acquisitions and €7 billion returned to shareholders over the period. Bazin said Saint-Gobain’s share price increased 127% from 2021 to 2025, which he said was three times more than the CAC 40 over the same period.
Management Outlines Lead & Grow Plan
Bazin said Saint-Gobain’s 2026-2030 Lead & Grow plan is designed to accelerate profitable growth around sustainable construction, with a focus on expanding its portfolio of building solutions, increasing exposure to non-residential buildings and infrastructure, and expanding in high-growth regions.
He said the company is targeting sales growth in the mid-single digits, an EBITDA margin between 15% and 18%, and outperformance of its underlying markets by 1 to 2 percentage points. Bazin also said Saint-Gobain aims to evolve more than 20% of group sales by 2030 through acquisitions and disposals.
The CEO highlighted construction chemicals as a key area of expansion, saying the company’s platform in the segment has a value of €6.5 billion across 76 countries. He also pointed to opportunities in data centers, hospitals, infrastructure and low-carbon construction materials.
2025 Results and 2026 Outlook
De Tournay said Saint-Gobain delivered sales of €46.5 billion and EBITDA of €7.2 billion in 2025. In local currency, sales rose 2.1%, EBITDA increased 3.4% and operating income grew 3.8%. The operating margin was 11.4%, while the EBITDA margin stood at 15.5%, in line with the prior year’s record level. Recurring net income totaled €3.3 billion, and return on capital employed was 14%.
By region, De Tournay said Europe, Middle East and Africa sales were “virtually stable” in local currency, with operating margin at 8.5%. The Americas posted 1.5% local-currency growth, supported by Latin America, where sales rose 13.5% with the integration of Cemex in Central America and gains in construction chemicals. Asia-Pacific sales rose 16.9% in local currency, driven by the integration of FOSROC and double-digit growth in India.
Free cash flow remained at €3.8 billion, up 29% compared with 2021, while net debt to EBITDA stood at 1.4 times.
For the first quarter of 2026, De Tournay said sales declined 2.3% in local currency, less than anticipated, despite difficult weather in North America and Europe. She said the group confirmed its 2026 guidance for an EBITDA margin above 15%.
The board recommended a dividend of €2.30 per share, up 4.5% from the prior year. De Tournay said Saint-Gobain also bought back €402 million of shares at the start of 2025 and plans €2 billion of buybacks between 2026 and 2030.
CSR Targets Focus on Decarbonization, Water and Safety
Pedini said Saint-Gobain’s climate strategy is focused on reducing its own footprint while helping customers decarbonize. She said the group has reduced Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 35% compared with 2017 and that 70% of its electricity is now decarbonized.
Pedini said Saint-Gobain reached in 2024 its prior 2030 target of reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 30%, and has raised its ambition to a 40% to 45% reduction by 2035 compared with 2017. She also said water withdrawals have fallen 26% compared with 2017 and non-recycled waste has declined 27%.
On safety, Pedini said the occupational accident rate has fallen 61% compared with 2015, but added that the company still has “too many serious accidents.” She said Saint-Gobain will roll out a new compulsory online safety training program for all employees.
Governance, Compensation and Resolutions
Cirelli said the board is balanced, diversified and independent, with 45% of directors being non-French nationals, excluding employee representatives under French law. He said the board had a 100% attendance rate and that an independent assessment confirmed strong interaction among directors and management.
On executive pay, Cirelli said Bazin’s 2025 compensation structure remained unchanged, consisting of fixed pay, capped variable pay and long-term performance shares. He said Bazin declined compensation tied to the safety criterion because of serious accidents, despite the company meeting its frequency-rate objective.
Goure said the statutory auditors issued unqualified opinions on the consolidated and statutory accounts and did not identify major errors, omissions or inconsistencies in sustainability reporting or Green Taxonomy compliance.
Shareholders approved all resolutions presented at the AGM. Approval levels included 99.79% for the third resolution on accounts, earnings appropriation and dividend; 93.48% for the renewal of Thierry Delaporte as director; 90.31% for the ex-post say-on-pay resolution for Bazin; and 99.39% for the share buyback authorization.
About Compagnie de Saint-Gobain (LON:COD)
Compagnie de Saint-Gobain SA designs, manufactures, and distributes materials and solutions for the construction and industrial markets worldwide. It operates through five segments: High Performance Solutions; Northern Europe; Southern Europe Middle East (ME) & Africa; Americas; and Asia-Pacific. The company offers glazing solutions for buildings and vehicles under the Saint-Gobain, GlassSolutions, Vetrotech, and SageGlass brands; plaster-based products for construction and renovation markets under the Placo, Rigips, and Gyproc brands; ceilings under the Ecophon, CertainTeed, Eurocoustic, Sonex, and Vinh Tuong brands; and insulation solutions for a range of applications, such as construction, engine compartments, vehicle interiors, household appliances, and photovoltaic panels under the Isover, CertainTeed, and Izocam brands.
