Farmed kingfish yellowtail at The Kingfish Company's booth in SENA 2025.
Photo: The Kingfish Company LinkedIn page.
The debate surrounding its financing and the review of its growth plans led The Kingfish Company to postpone its FY 2025 and Q1 2026 results until just a month and a half ago. Now that the process is complete, the Netherlands-based company is returning to normal and has published its Q2 2026 trading update today, reporting continued growth supported by strong demand for fresh large fish.
Regarding commercial performance, as has been the case in recent quarters—even though the results at the end of 2025 were lower than expected—the upward trend continues. Thus, in the second quarter of 2026, Kingfish continued to register year-over-year growth.
Specifically, revenue increased by 9% to EUR 10.4 million, while sales volume grew by 5% to 755 metric tons. However, considering that the company discontinued sales of fresh fish in the U.S. in October of last year, on a like-for-like basis (excluding that item), revenue increased by 15%, while volume increased by 9%.
According to the statement sent to the stock exchange, this growth is mainly explained by the strength of demand from the restaurant market, especially in the large fresh fish segment. "Customer engagement continues to strengthen with chef partnerships, expanded distributor agreements, and resilient demand in priority market," it explained.
Regarding fresh large fish volumes, they increased by 28% year-on-year, also on a like-for-like basis during the quarter. Meanwhile, prices for superior-quality fresh large fish remained solid, with a comparable year-on-year increase of 5%.
Likewise, the company reported that, compared to Q2 2025, average revenue per kilogram increased by EUR 0.6, reaching EUR 13.8 per kilogram. However, Kingfish cautioned that the improvement in underlying prices was partially offset by a lower proportion of superior-grade fish, which impacted the price mix during the quarter.
Meanwhile, revenue from frozen product sales decreased by 33% year-on-year. The company explained that this decline is a result of its continued focus on developing the premium segments of fresh and frozen products, prioritizing value over volume.
As for the production, The Kingfish Company's Q2 2026 trading update reported that it reached 691 metric tons. Although this represents a 2% decrease compared to the 707 metric tons recorded in the same quarter last year, the land-based farmer considers it has remained stable.
For its part, the standing biomass reached 950 metric tons of yellowtail kingfish at the end of the quarter, which is in line with the company's nominal target level.
However, as mentioned above, Kingfish also reported that from mid-May, it experienced a temporary decrease in the proportion of superior-grade fish, which went from above 90% to approximately 75%.
According to the statement, the lower proportion of superior-grade mainly affected larger fish and, as mentioned, had an adverse product-mix impact during the quarter.
The land-based yellowtail kingfish farmer said that it has undertaken a detailed review to identify the causes and has implemented corrective measures, including reversing certain changes to farming practices introduced over recent quarters.
Kingfish added that the first benefits of these measures are expected to become visible during the next quarter. However, due to the biological production cycle and the current biomass composition, the company anticipates the product mix will continue to be affected for the next 6 to 12 months.
Although it has not been included in this Q2 2026 trading update, this second quarter of the year was also the one in which The Kingfish Company put an end to the debate on its financing and the review of its growth plans.
With a predictable outcome announced in May, when we learned that the Icelandic investment firm Eyrir was going to acquire a majority stake in The Kingfish Company, the operation was finally completed at the end of June, with the successful completion of the announced EUR 21 million private placement.
Furthermore, along with that private placement, the company also reported the conversion of its outstanding convertible loan and the amendment to its senior financing agreement. "Together, these steps materially strengthen our balance sheet, improve liquidity, and simplify our capital structure," the release then explained.
Of those EUR 21 million, Eyrir subscribed to shares worth EUR 15 million so that, upon completion of the operation, the investment firm is the majority shareholder of the company.
"We are particularly pleased to welcome Eyrir Invest as our largest shareholder following the transaction. Their support, together with that of our existing shareholders and new investors, reflects confidence not only in The Kingfish Company's long-term potential, but also in Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) technology," the company's statement then read.
Then, as today, the pioneer and leader in sustainable land-based aquaculture, specializing in the production of yellowtail kingfish, highlighted that it remains focused on strengthening operational consistency while building on its market growth momentum.