Heathrow’s annual earnings drop by more than a third

Heathrow has revealed annual profits fell by more than a third, but it paid out dividends to shareholders for the first time in five years despite the earnings drop.

Owners of the airport reported pre-tax profits of £575 million for 2025, down 37.3% from £917 million in 2024.

Heathrow’s board decided to pay dividends to shareholders totalling £550 million during the last financial year.

The airport’s owners largely consist of overseas investors, led by private equity giant Ardian and the sovereign wealth funds of Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Heathrow saw a 0.7% rise in annual passengers travelling through its terminals to a record 84.5 million.

Revenues increased by 1.8% to £3.62 billion and underlying earnings were flat at £2.03 billion.

Heathrow said the financial benefit of higher passenger numbers last year was offset by a number of factors.

These include lower airport charges set by regulator the Civil Aviation Authority, increased costs to maintain its “ageing” infrastructure and expenditure needed to support operational performance.

Thomas Woldbye, chief executive of Heathrow, said: “Last year everyone at Heathrow rallied behind our ambition to deliver exceptional operational performance for our customers.

“Not only did we meet that goal, we surpassed it and achieved record-breaking service levels.

“With strong foundations in place and with the airport now operating very close to capacity, the next chapter is crucial to our success.

“Expansion will unlock significant economic benefits and create an extraordinary airport, fit for the future.

“In 2026, we’ll continue progressing our plans so we can deliver for both our customers and for the country.”

Heathrow said it made investments totalling £1.3 billion last year, which were “targeted in areas that matter most to passengers and airlines”.

This included completing the roll out of next generation scanners which enable passengers to keep liquids and laptops in their bags when they pass through security.

The airport said this has “transformed the security experience” by “reducing queuing and improving resilience”.

Heathrow is planning to invest the same amount this year, which will include starting work to revamp Terminal 4, making progress with designing a new baggage system for Terminal 2, and improvements to services for passengers with accessibility needs.