Eutelsat's African Broadband Offensive Targets 2 Million New Users as Shares Slide into Oversold Territory

Despite a 26% stock drop and oversold RSI of 24, Eutelsat’s Africa expansion—KONNECT Wi-Fi and LEO satellites—drives 15.3% connectivity growth, targeting €1.7B revenue by 2029.

The satellite operator’s stock has given back roughly a quarter of its value since late May, when it peaked at €4.62, but the underlying business is telling a different story. At €3.44, the shares are now trading 26% below that 52-week high and have flashed a classic oversold signal — the relative strength index (RSI) has slumped to about 24. Yet Eutelsat is simultaneously rolling out one of its most ambitious growth initiatives to date, aiming to connect an additional two million people in sub?Saharan Africa by the end of 2029.

The company’s KONNECT Wi?Fi programme already links more than 1.3 million users via solar?powered hotspots in countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Tanzania. That milestone was reached two years ahead of schedule — the original target had been 2027. Now Eutelsat is doubling down. The expanded plan is expected to generate over 5,000 indirect jobs across roughly twenty African nations, and construction of a new ground station in Tanzania is slated to go live by the end of 2026, developed in partnership with the organisation unconnected.org.

Further south, Eutelsat has deepened its collaboration with Airtel Madagascar, deploying OneWeb’s low?Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to deliver broadband to remote areas. Tests on moving trains achieved download speeds of up to 100 Mbit/s, and the technology can be combined with existing fibre and 4G networks. The company claims to be the first global operator to blend GEO and LEO capacity for Africa, with additional ground stations already operating in Ghana, Senegal, Angola, South Africa and Mauritius.

That connectivity drive is the bright spot in a mixed earnings picture. In the third quarter of the current financial year (2025/26), Eutelsat reported total revenue of €293 million — a 2.3% drop on a reported basis but a 3.1% increase when adjusted for constant currency and scope. The connectivity segment grew 15.3% year?on?year, propelled by a 65% surge in LEO?based solutions. The legacy video division, however, continues to contract: video revenue fell 13.3% to €128 million as traditional satellite?TV loses ground to streaming.

Management confirmed its full?year guidance and outlined a longer?term road map. By the 2028/29 fiscal year, the company expects revenues from its four operating segments to land between €1.5 billion and €1.7 billion, with an EBITDA margin of at least 65% — a figure the executive team believes is achievable through operating leverage and a rising contribution from LEO services.

To bankroll that expansion, Eutelsat has been busy shoring up its balance sheet. A comprehensive refinancing strategy was completed in mid?May, following a €1.5 billion capital raise at the end of 2025 and a bond placement of equivalent size in March 2026. The total financing package, designed to support the build?out of LEO activities, amounts to roughly €5 billion. Net debt currently stands at about 2.7 times EBITDA, and gross capital expenditure for the year is expected to reach around €900 million.

The market’s reaction has been decidedly unimpressed in recent weeks. After surging more than 90% year?to?date — and nearly 94% in one reading — the stock has given back almost 19% in just the past seven trading days. The slide accelerated after a mid?May 52?week high of €4.47, though the ultimate peak of €4.62 was hit later in the month. With the RSI now deep in oversold territory, some technicians see a potential bounce, but the overriding concern remains whether Eutelsat can sustain its LEO momentum fast enough to offset the structural decline in video. The next quarterly numbers will offer a crucial test of that narrative.