HAL earns less money and is worth more, and both are true at the same time

Two thermometers, two directions. In the first half, HAL earns less money: net profit attributable to the group falls to EUR 856 million. But the value of its portfolio rises: net asset value reaches EUR 17.626 billion. A holding company can perfectly well live both movements at once, and understanding why is more useful than picking which of the two figures is the right one.

First reflex: separate profit from the value of the portfolio

HAL calculates its net asset value using market value for the listed holdings and the liquid portfolio, but carrying value for the unlisted companies. That detail is essential. When a listed line rises on the market, net asset value can move up immediately. When Boskalis earns less money over six months, it is the income statement that carries the trace first.

What the EUR 17.6 billion of net asset value looks like

Boskalis is not one holding among others

HAL holds 100% of Boskalis. Its carrying value of EUR 5.308 billion is about 30.1% of HAL's net asset value at 30 June, and close to 64% of the whole unlisted pocket. So it is not a line we give room to out of preference: it is an asset whose movement can change how the whole of HAL reads.

Boskalis slows markedly, without its whole order book deteriorating

Boskalis revenue falls 18.9%, to EUR 1.902 billion. EBITDA falls further, by 26.1%, and operating profit by 36.5%. The EBITDA margin goes from about 31.9% to 29.1%.

"Weaker offshore wind" does not mean "badly executed offshore wind"

HAL's report explains the fall in Boskalis's results by geopolitical uncertainty, delays in the award of new dredging projects and weaker conditions in offshore wind. That is accurate. Boskalis's own communication adds a useful qualification.

Boskalis says its Offshore Energy division again delivered a strong contribution in the first half, with good execution on several large projects, offshore wind among them. The weakness is more visible in dredging, where fleet utilisation fell, and in certain offshore services activities.

Put another way: a market for new contracts can tighten at the very moment when contracts already signed are being executed very well. That is exactly where reading a holding on top of the holding company earns its place. It turns a general explanation into an operating mechanism.

Meanwhile, the listed lines have gained close to a billion in value

The market value of HAL's listed holdings reaches about EUR 6.1 billion at the end of June, against EUR 5.1 billion at the end of December. HAL cites mainly Vopak, SBM Offshore and Siltronic to explain the rise.

Paradoxically, the accounting income from those same listed holdings falls, from EUR 581 million to EUR 429 million. Here again, portfolio value and contribution to profit do not tell the same story.

HAL even gives an update after the closing date: from 30 June to 21 August, the value of the listed holdings and of the liquid portfolio rose by a further EUR 240 million or so, that is EUR 2.66 per share. This is not a complete new net asset value: HAL is revaluing only the listed and liquid part here.

VolkerWessels: a large transaction, and a real competition file

HAL continues to indicate completion expected in the second half of 2026. But the clearance is not a formality. The Dutch competition regulator concluded in March that an in-depth investigation was needed, notably on large civil engineering tenders, asphalt production and milling.

What the half year actually says

HAL did not simply publish "lower profit". Its most concentrated asset, Boskalis, had a less profitable half year after a record 2025, while its order book stays substantial and certain offshore activities continue to execute well. In parallel, the listed holdings gained a great deal of value.

The holding company is worth more on its own net asset value method, at the very moment when its main unlisted engine earns less.

That is exactly why an investment company reads neither purely as an industrial business nor purely as a stock market portfolio. You have to read both at once.

Editorial information, with no investment advice and no investment recommendation. The Boskalis weight calculations are Opulion calculations from the values published by HAL. The value of Boskalis used in HAL's net asset value is a carrying value, not a standalone estimate of its market value.