The Danish shipping company DFDS increased its freight traffic in the Strait of Gibraltar by 6% during the third quarter of 2026, while the number of passengers carried fell by 8.4% compared with the same period a year earlier, mainly due to lower demand on the Ceuta connection. These figures are part of the financial report published this Wednesday, November 11, in which the group reported a 28% increase in quarterly operating profit.
According to figures provided by the company, its services in the Strait carried a total of 439,000 lane metres of freight between July and September, compared with 414,000 recorded in the same quarter of 2025. DFDS attributes this growth to an increase in the number of sailings on its maritime routes.
Passenger transport followed a different trend. The shipping company recorded 443,000 passengers on its Strait routes, compared with 484,000 in the third quarter of the previous financial year. The company links this 8.4% decline mainly to lower demand on the route to Ceuta, although the report does not provide a breakdown of passenger traffic by individual connection.
In the first nine months of the year, DFDS's operations in the Strait handled 1.69 million lane metres of freight, compared with 1.625 million in the same period of 2025. As for passenger traffic, the cumulative total stood at 701,000, compared with 979,000 recorded between January and September of the previous financial year.
The report also notes a positive trend in the results of the group's maritime operations in the English Channel and the Strait of Gibraltar, linked to an increase in the average revenue generated by its services. The company does not provide specific financial results for the Strait routes, which are included in its ferry division as a whole.
One of the developments included in the financial report is the acquisition of Naviera Armas Trasmediterránea's operations on the Algeciras–Tangier Med route, a transaction completed on October 8. The deal includes the Volcán de Tamasite, a combined passenger and freight vessel, the operating rights for the route, and the employees involved in the business.
DFDS values the total price of the assets acquired at 165 million Danish kroner, while the transaction's accounting note lists consideration of 162 million kroner, paid in cash. The company says the acquired business will be integrated into its Strait operations and that its results will begin to be consolidated in the group's accounts from the fourth quarter of 2026.
Across its business as a whole, DFDS generated revenue of 8.826 billion Danish kroner in the third quarter, up 6.4% from the 8.296 billion recorded a year earlier. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) reached 1.477 billion kroner, an increase of 5.8%, while operating profit (EBIT) rose 27.8% to 685 million.
Net profit for the period stood at 437 million Danish kroner, compared with 276 million in the third quarter of 2025. Adjusted free cash flow reached 205 million, following a negative figure of 40 million in the same period of the previous financial year.
The ferry division, which includes the Strait operations, recorded revenue of 5.081 billion kroner, up 6.8%, and operating profit of 633 million, compared with 564 million a year earlier. Across the division as a whole, freight traffic fell by 1.2% and passenger traffic by 3.6%.
The logistics division also improved its results, with revenue of 4.230 billion kroner and operating profit of 108 million. However, DFDS notes that its businesses linked to Turkey continue to be affected by market conditions and have a negative impact on consolidated results.
As it looks to the end of the financial year, the company maintains its forecast for annual operating profit of between 1.2 billion and 1.4 billion Danish kroner. At the same time, it raises its revenue growth estimate to a range of 4% to 5%, from the previous range of 3% to 5%, and forecasts adjusted free cash flow of between 800 million and 1 billion kroner, above the approximately 500 million estimated previously.
In parallel, DFDS reported traffic figures for October this Wednesday, showing an increase in freight transport in the Strait compared with the same month in 2025, related both to the trend in activity and to the additional volumes brought in after the acquisition of Armas's operations. Passenger traffic, by contrast, remained below the level recorded a year earlier.
