Press release -
Norwegian Group announces dividend following strong second quarter
The Norwegian Group reported record strong figures during the second quarter, with a profit before tax (EBT) of above NOK 1 billion. Operational performance remained stellar, with Norwegian among the top European airlines on punctuality. In addition, the company announced that it will pay a dividend for the first time in its history, of NOK 0.90 per share, to be paid in August.
During the second quarter, the Norwegian Group recorded an operating profit (EBIT) of NOK 1,250 million and an operating margin of 12.2 percent, the second highest second-quarter result in the company’s history. The liquidity position increased to NOK 13.8 billion, up NOK 3.3 billion from the previous quarter, positively impacted by strong operational cash flow and the completed financing of ten previously acquired aircraft.
“We are very pleased to report a record second quarter across several metrics for both Norwegian and Widerøe. The operating profit and margin are the second highest we have ever had in this quarter, and the passenger numbers and load factor are the highest in a second quarter since 2019. In addition, we have reached a significant milestone as Norwegian, for the first time in our 23-year long history, will pay out a dividend of NOK 0.90 per share,” said Geir Karlsen, CEO of Norwegian.
Dividend payment
The dividend has been decided by Norwegian’s Board of Directors in accordance with the authorisation from the annual general meeting and will be paid in August. Norwegian will deposit the full outstanding amount of the remaining corporate bond, enabling the company to pay dividends. The dividend will primarily be funded from the company’s dividend fund.
In the second quarter of 2025, the Norwegian group had 7.6 million passengers, of which 6.5 million were passengers of Norwegian and 1.1 million of Widerøe. Compared to the same period last year, the number of passengers increased by 192,000 and 82,000 for Norwegian and Widerøe, respectively. The quarterly load factor for Norwegian was 85.2 percent, up 2.8 percentage points from last year, while Widerøe had a load factor of 73.9 percent, an increase of 3.7 percentage points from the same period last year.
Robust booking trend
“We continue to see good booking figures, and the trend for Norwegian for July, August, and the autumn season is encouraging, with close to ten percent more tickets sold compared to the same time last year. With the recent acquisitions of 13 aircraft previously on lease to Norwegian, along with the agreement to purchase eleven CFM LEAP-1B spare engines, we are making important progress as our fleet strategy begins to bear fruit. In short, we are seeing a lot of positives going into the second half of 2025,” said Geir Karlsen.
Topics
Categories
About Norwegian
The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company, headquartered at Fornebu outside Oslo, Norway. The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap. Widerøe was acquired by Norwegian in 2024, aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks.
Norwegian Air Shuttle, the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees, operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations. In 2024, Norwegian carried 22,6 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 86 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
Widerøe’s Flyveselskap, Norway’s oldest airline, is Scandinavia’s largest regional carrier. The airline has more than 3,500 employees. Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway, Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network. In 2024, the airline had 3.8 million passengers and a fleet of 49 aircraft, including 46 Bombardier Dash 8’s and three Embraer E190-E2's. Widerøe Ground Handling provides ground handling services at 41 Norwegian airports.
The Norwegian group has sustainability as a key priority and has committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions from its operations. Among numerous initiatives, the most noteworthy is the investment in production and use of fossil-free aviation fuel (SAF). Norwegian strives to become the sustainable choice for its passengers, actively contributing to the transformation of the aviation industry.
