Nairobi Securities Exchange — Safaricom FY2026 Lands as NSE 20 Jumps 4.17% but Stock Slips 0.3%
Safaricom released audited FY2026 results on June 22, 2026, in a session where the NSE 20 rose 4.17% to 1,080.87. SCOM slipped 0.3% despite KES 355.2 million in traded value, showing the market was parsing operating details rather than chasing the headline.
|6 min read
A rare contrast defined Kenyan trading on Monday, June 22, 2026: Safaricom Plc, the market’s telecom bellwether and one of the heaviest weights on the bourse, released its audited results for the year ended March 31, 2026, while the NSE 20 surged 4.17% to 1,080.87. Yet Safaricom shares slipped 0.3%, with KES 355.2 million in traded value, showing that even a flagship earnings release does not automatically trigger a rally when the market is focused on the quality of growth rather than the headline event.
Key figures
- NSE 20: 1,080.87, up 4.17%
- Safaricom (SCOM): -0.3%, with KES 355.2 million traded
- Equity Group (EQTY): KES 2.284 billion traded, stock flat
- USD/KES: 129.44, up 0.77%
- Brent crude: $78.19/bbl, down 2.1% on the day
Market context: strong index gain, weaker breadth underneath
The 4.17% jump in the NSE 20 painted a bullish picture for NSE Kenya today, but market breadth was less convincing. Only advanced, while and , out of in the day’s tally. That means the index move was driven by selected names and weighting effects rather than a broad-based rise across the exchange.
Liquidity was concentrated in large-cap financials and telecoms. Equity Group Holdings led turnover with KES 2.284 billion traded and the stock unchanged, followed by Safaricom Plc at KES 355.2 million, KCB Group at KES 142.9 million, Diamond Trust Bank at KES 42.2 million, and Absa Bank Kenya at KES 37.5 million, according to verified market data. That turnover profile matters: it suggests the session was shaped more by institutional rotation among heavyweights than by retail momentum chasing safaricom share price today.
Macro factors also mattered. The Kenyan shilling weakened, with USD/KES up 0.77% to 129.44, increasing the local-currency cost of imported equipment, fuel, and any dollar-linked obligations. At the same time, Brent crude fell 2.1% to $78.19 per barrel, against a global backdrop of U.S.-Iran peace-talk headlines and a softer 2026 oil outlook. For Kenya, a net fuel importer, lower oil prices can ease inflation pressure and support household spending, but part of that benefit can be offset when the currency is under pressure.
Safaricom earnings 2026: why the stock did not follow the index higher
The central event of the session was Safaricom’s audited FY2026 release for the year ended March 31, 2026. The market reaction was restrained rather than dramatic: the stock fell 0.3%. That kind of move is common when a company as closely followed as Safaricom reports numbers that are already partly priced in and investors shift quickly from the headline to the underlying drivers of the next earnings cycle.
For Safaricom, the investment case is bigger than one reporting period. On the Nairobi stock exchange today, the group is simultaneously a telecom operator, a fintech platform through M-Pesa, and a regional expansion story through Ethiopia. That mix explains the cautious price action. On one side, domestic mobile-data demand and mobile-money usage remain core supports for the business. On the other, network investment, imported equipment costs, and the economics of scaling Ethiopia can weigh on margins, especially with USD/KES at 129.44.
The fact that Safaricom generated KES 355.2 million in traded value while edging lower suggests active repositioning rather than a loss of confidence. Investors were likely comparing the telecom giant’s earnings profile with the banking names that absorbed most of the day’s liquidity. That comparison became even more relevant after the NSE announced a new Banking Sector Index on June 22, 2026. With EQTY, KCB, DTB and Absa together accounting for more than KES 2.82 billion in traded value, financials competed directly with telecoms for capital allocation.
Telecoms, M-Pesa and FX: the real fault lines in Kenya telecom sector performance
For retail investors trying to interpret Safaricom earnings 2026, the key question is not whether the release was simply “good” or “bad.” The more useful question is which operating levers will matter most over the next 12 months. The first is M-Pesa, which remains central to Safaricom’s premium valuation on the Kenyan market. Any serious reading of the results has to focus on transaction growth, service monetisation, and the group’s ability to defend margins as competition and regulatory scrutiny evolve.
The second is Ethiopia. The expansion story remains strategically important because it opens a large addressable market, but it also requires capital, patience and tolerance for execution risk. In a session where the dollar strengthened 0.77% against the shilling, imported network gear and other foreign-currency-linked costs become more expensive in KES terms. That is one reason a major earnings release can be met with caution even when the long-term growth narrative remains intact.
The third is the broader macro backdrop. Brent at $78.19 can help the Kenyan economy by reducing fuel-related pressure on transport, logistics and household budgets. For Safaricom, the effect is indirect rather than immediate, but stronger consumer spending power can support usage across voice, data and mobile money. The counterweight is the weaker shilling, which raises imported cost lines. That push-and-pull helps explain why the stock underperformed the index on the day.
Other earnings stories: Car and General rallies, TotalEnergies Kenya falls
The session was not only about Safaricom. Car and General Kenya, which also released audited financial statements for the period ended December 31, 2025, was the day’s top gainer among the main movers, rising 8.3% to KES 127.0. In a market where decliners still outnumbered advancers by 28 to 20, that gain stands out. It suggests investors responded positively either to the quality of the earnings, the balance-sheet profile, or the company’s ability to navigate still-selective demand conditions.
By contrast, TotalEnergies Marketing Kenya, another earnings name on the tape, fell 3.1% to KES 47.5. That may look counterintuitive with Brent down 2.1%, but listed fuel marketers do not always benefit immediately from lower oil prices. Inventory effects, regulated margins, and expectations already embedded in the stock can all shape the reaction. In other words, lower crude is not automatically bullish for a downstream energy stock if investors are reassessing earnings quality.
Elsewhere, I&M Holdings rose 2.8% to KES 63.5, while East African Breweries added 0.6% to KES 275.0. On the downside, Kenya Airways lost 3.9% to KES 5.5, Unga Group fell 4.3% to KES 25.6, and Uchumi dropped 11.2% to KES 1.58. Agricultural counters were mixed: Sasini jumped 7.1% to KES 22.5, while Williamson Tea fell 2.3% to KES 130.0 and Eaagads lost 2.9% to KES 32.0. That divergence came as global coffee prices fell 3.2%, while cocoa surged 11.4%, underlining how commodity moves can affect sentiment unevenly across East African agribusiness names.
What the session says about the Kenya stock market
