Eutelsat Inks Airbus Mega-Order and Arctic Partnership, Yet Stock Sheds 4.2% in Single Day

Despite a record satellite order and strategic deals in Angola and the Arctic, Eutelsat's stock crashes 4.2% to €2.44, down 47% from its 52-week high amid fierce competition.

Eutelsat is in the midst of a brutal contradiction. The satellite operator has just placed its largest-ever hardware order — 340 new satellites with Airbus Defence — and sealed strategic deals on two continents, yet the stock keeps sinking like a stone. On Thursday, shares closed at €2.44, down another 4.21%, extending a weekly rout that has already shaved off more than a fifth of the company’s market value. The distance from the 52-week high of €4.62, touched at the end of May, now stands at nearly 47%.

The Airbus contract turbocharges the OneWeb low Earth orbit (LEO) constellation, the segment that has become Eutelsat’s main growth engine following its merger with OneWeb. In the first nine months of the current fiscal year, LEO revenue jumped 50% despite adverse currency effects worth around €42 million. The new satellites will further expand global coverage, giving Eutelsat additional ammunition to compete in the fast-growing broadband market.

Anchoring Positions in Angola and the Arctic

Commercial wins are building on that hardware momentum. Eutelsat has signed a multi-year exclusivity agreement with Mercury, a subsidiary of Angola’s state-owned energy group Sonangol. Mercury will use the LEO network for high-speed connectivity targeting enterprise clients, government agencies, and offshore oil platforms. Eutelsat remains the only licensed LEO operator in Angola — a structural edge it reinforces with a local ground station and a network node run together with the Paratus Group.

Simultaneously, Eutelsat inked a strategic multi-year deal with Tusass, Greenland’s national telecom provider, focusing on maritime services and emergency communications in the Arctic. Geostationary satellites struggle in those high latitudes, giving OneWeb’s polar-orbit constellation a distinct advantage. Eutelsat markets this as a core strength of its combined GEO-LEO fleet.

Competition Intensifies as the Market Remains Unimpressed

Despite these wins, investors are not taking the bait. The broader satellite broadband landscape is becoming crowded. India’s Reliance Jio is planning its own LEO constellation with around 1,600 satellites, while Amazon’s Project Kuiper recently secured an expansion deal in Uzbekistan. SES, a traditional rival, is currently shoring up its position with share buybacks — a different strategic bet than Eutelsat’s heavy spending on physical infrastructure.

The technical picture looks equally grim. The stock crashed below the crucial support level of €2.59 earlier in the week, closing Wednesday at €2.54 before sliding further on Thursday. The 200-day moving average sits around €3.00, now well out of reach. The relative strength index (RSI) stands at 34.8, inching toward oversold territory, while the annualized 30-day volatility has shot up to 107.60% — a clear high-risk signal.

Valuation Under the Microscope

Discounted cash flow models still point to a significantly higher intrinsic value than the current share price, but those models must contend with a €535 million impairment charge and the steady erosion of the legacy GEO video business. The CENTAURE defence contract, valued at €138 million, and the fresh LEO partnerships may shift sentiment eventually, but the market is waiting for hard proof that operational growth can outweigh the drag from the old satellite fleet.

The next quarterly results will serve as the first real litmus test. Until then, Eutelsat keeps building — and the market keeps selling.