Helsinki Exchange: Whose business is accelerating fastest?
The Finnish stock market has offered several surprises this spring, with some companies managing to kick-start their businesses unexpectedly fast. In this overview, based on the first quarter of 2026, we examine three companies on the Helsinki Stock Exchange whose financial growth has taken the sharpest leap upward. Although Fiskars also showed strong profit growth by the numbers, we are leaving them out of the top three. Their result was primarily driven by the disappearance of a one-off IT expense from the previous year, rather than real sales growth. We focus on companies whose engine is actual business operations.
Taaleri has made an impressive profit turnaround in the first quarter. The company's operating profit grew by a whopping 348.5 percent year-on-year, reaching solidly into positive territory from the previous quarter's decline, and sales revenue also increased by 35 percent.
The main engine of this strong result is the company's insurance business Garantia, whose investment income turned from a loss into a profit. In addition, investor confidence is supported by the recently completed acquisition of a stake in NSI, which opens up a new and promising growth direction for Taaleri in the venture capital market.
Kempower's business operations are making a strong comeback, turning the previous decline in operating profit into a growth of nearly 50 percent. This was supported by a rapid acceleration in sales revenue, which grew by 53.6 percent compared to the same period last year, bringing in 66.8 million euros.
The growth is primarily driven by very strong demand in European markets outside the Nordics, which brought the company 16 million euros in additional revenue. Although material costs have increased due to market price pressure, the newly published strategy and clear long-term profit targets give investors confidence that the company is moving on the right track.
Neste made a huge leap in the first quarter, earning 685 million euros in operating profit and turning last year's loss into a strong profit. The company's sales revenue also returned to growth, reaching 5.2 billion euros, while operating expenses were successfully reduced.
This acceleration was born thanks to a sharp rise in the margins of oil products and renewable fuels. However, investors must be cautious, as the company recently issued a profit warning, citing a potential future decline in renewable product margins, which casts slight doubt on the sustainability of the first quarter's success story.
Conclusion
These three examples prove that there are companies on the Helsinki Stock Exchange capable of successfully turning their businesses around and gaining new momentum. Whether it is successful investments, expansion into new markets, or favorable margins, each company has its own clear catalyst. Investors should now monitor whether these strong first-quarter winds will carry the companies forward into the second half of the year, especially considering changing market conditions.
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