FEMSA’s OXXO traffic posts best showing in over two years but Health slides (NYSE: FMX)

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Oct 28th, 2026

What happened

Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE: FMX), or FEMSA, grew third-quarter revenue 9.8% to Ps. 235.61 billion from Ps. 214.64 billion a year earlier. Income from operations rose 9.9% to Ps. 19.92 billion. The operating margin edged up to 8.5% from 8.4%.

Chief Executive José Antonio Fernández Garza-Lagera credited the two largest businesses, OXXO Mexico and Coca-Cola FEMSA. He said OXXO Mexico's customer traffic was its strongest in more than two years. He called Coca-Cola FEMSA's quarter very strong.

Key numbers

Metric	Latest	Change	Source
Total revenues, 3Q26	Ps. 235.61 billion	from Ps. 214.64 billion, +9.8%	SEC 6-K, FEMSA 3Q26 results
Income from operations, 3Q26	Ps. 19.92 billion	from Ps. 18.13 billion, +9.9%	SEC 6-K, FEMSA 3Q26 results
Consolidated net income, 3Q26	Ps. 10.57 billion	from Ps. 5.84 billion, +81.0%	SEC 6-K, FEMSA 3Q26 results
Net debt ex-KOF to adjusted LTM EBITDA	1.19x	from 0.91x	SEC 6-K, FEMSA 3Q26 results
Five-year Swiss franc bond issued	CHF 300 million		SEC 6-K, FEMSA 3Q26 results

Two engines carry the quarter

OXXO Mexico grew revenue 10.3%. Same-store sales rose 9.2% and stores grew 2.9%. Average ticket rose 5.5% and store traffic rose 3.5%. The release says the ticket increase mainly reflected excise taxes on beverages and cigarettes.

Profit grew more slowly than sales. OXXO Mexico's income from operations rose 5.8% to Ps. 8.04 billion. The margin slipped to 9.3% from 9.7%. Gross margin fell to 44.8% from 46.0%. The release blames mainly a tough comparison, because the third quarter of 2025 had an unusually high amount of commercial income. Store-closure costs and higher labor expenses also weighed.

The chain opened 191 stores and closed 140 older, underperforming ones in the quarter. It ended with 24,759 stores.

Coca-Cola FEMSA grew revenue 10.9% and income from operations 15.4%. The release says its margin gain lifted the consolidated operating margin. Margins at OXXO Mexico, Americas Mobility, Europe and Health all fell. FEMSA incorporates Coca-Cola FEMSA's own discussion of its results by reference.

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Why it matters

By OptimistFi's calculation, revenue added Ps. 20.97 billion and income from operations added Ps. 1.79 billion versus the third quarter of 2025. Operating profit kept pace with sales at the group level. The investment case depends on that kind of conversion.

Net income rose faster, up 81.0% to Ps. 10.57 billion from Ps. 5.84 billion, but one-off items helped. The release credits the absence of a Ps. 3.15 billion loss from discontinued operations in the third quarter of 2025, tied to the Solistica divestiture. It also credits operating growth and a non-cash foreign exchange gain of Ps. 1.12 billion, against a loss of Ps. 1.26 billion a year earlier.

Higher net interest expense of Ps. 4.54 billion partly offset those gains. Lower rates and cash balances cut interest income.

The nine-month figures carry a larger one-off. Net income of Ps. 37.46 billion, up 84.0%, mainly reflects a first-quarter gain tied to ImperialBrady, the merger of BradyPLUS and Imperial Dade. Without that gain, net income was Ps. 25.50 billion, up 12.1%.

OptimistFi has argued that FMX works if OXXO and Coca-Cola FEMSA keep turning daily traffic into recurring cash flow while management redeploys the balance sheet at attractive returns. The quarter supports the first half. The second half still waits on the buyback, so the read is mixed.

Where the weak spots are

Europe's revenue fell 5.2% on currency headwinds. It grew 4.0% on a currency-neutral basis. Its income from operations fell 24.8%, mainly because of a lower B2B contribution.

Health's income from operations fell 63.2% to Ps. 319 million. The release cites a non-cash credit-risk provision of Ps. 430 million tied to unwinding Colombia's institutional business. It also cites lower profit in Chile.

Americas Mobility grew revenue 18.1%, but income from operations fell 75.9% to Ps. 170 million. The release blames OXXO Brazil's losses, consolidated since Feb. 1, and continued pressure on fuel margins in Mexico. Bara, whose results are not consolidated in that segment, grew revenue 44.1% and reached 898 stores.

Management also flagged a soft consumer in Mexico and volatility in Brazil. It said coming quarters bring a more demanding comparison base.

The Swiss franc bond and leverage

FEMSA issued CHF 300 million of five-year senior unsecured bonds in the Swiss market, settled on Oct. 14. The bonds priced 107 basis points over the benchmark rate for a yield of 1.73%. S&P Global Ratings rates them BBB+ and Fitch Ratings rates them A. FEMSA says the proceeds will fund general corporate purposes, improve its cost of debt and add financial flexibility.

Net debt excluding Coca-Cola FEMSA stood at Ps. 95.20 billion on Sept. 30. That is 1.19 times adjusted EBITDA for the last twelve months, up from 0.91 times a year earlier. The release mainly blames cash outflows tied to FEMSA's capital allocation strategy. Capital expenditures fell 28.3% to Ps. 9.41 billion.

What's next

FEMSA entered an accelerated share repurchase agreement on Sept. 14 to buy back up to US$280 million of its ADSs through a financial institution in the United States. The final number of ADSs depends on the daily volume-weighted average ADS price over the term, less a discount. The total may be lower. Final settlement is expected before year-end 2026.

That settlement is the next dated test of how FEMSA returns capital. Management has said the final quarter faces a more demanding comparison base. OXXO Mexico's traffic and margin in the next quarterly results will show whether the recovery holds.

From OptimistFi Perps

Sources

SEC Form 6-K, Exhibit 99.1: FEMSA 3Q 2026 Results — FEMSA's third-quarter 2026 results release dated Oct. 28, 2026, including recent developments on the Swiss franc bond and the accelerated share repurchase.
SEC filing

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