Bekaert returns cash via buybacks as H1 holds steady and it exits a weak plant
Buyback keeps shrinking the share count Bekaert kept buying its own shares through the summer, cancelling them so each remaining share owns a bigger slice of the company. That steady demand supports the price, though the amounts are modest and spread over weeks.
The recurring buyback is the main ongoing force lifting the shares this period.
First-half results: flat sales, solid margin, softer profit Sales were flat and the 8.3% operating margin stayed healthy, with 4% more volume from tire cord. But profit fell 10% and cash flow was squeezed by the Bridgestone plant purchases, so the market got reassurance rather than a boost.
The half-year report is the period's key fundamental update on earnings and cash.
Sardinia exit trims a loss-making tire cord site Bekaert agreed to hand its Macchiareddu tire cord plant to Nuova Icom, with workers re-employed and the deal closing around October. It removes a site whose production was no longer viable, a small step toward a leaner, more profitable footprint.
This is the period's only structural portfolio move and shapes the longer-term cost base.