Meliá reports €30,000 profit with 50,000 employees: financial engineering?

Meliá: €30,000 profit in a quarter with 50,000 employees

Hotel chain Meliá Hotels International has reported a profit of just €30,000 for the first quarter of 2026, a figure that contrasts with its workforce of nearly 50,000 employees and a stock market capitalization of around €2.5 billion. The number has raised suspicions among analysts and accounting experts, who point to financial engineering practices aimed at minimizing the reported result.

The mystery of the €30,000

In a sector where margins are tightening but terraces are full, the figure is striking. Historically, Meliá has reported annual profits of between €100 and €200 million, according to market data. This quarter, however, barely exceeds the profitability of a small local business. Some analysts suggest that the CEO's bonus, worth several million euros, was charged against earnings, drastically reducing net profit. Others go further, speaking of an inflated expense structure designed to benefit the executive leadership through bonuses and pay raises, rather than distributing dividends among shareholders.

The share price doesn't flinch

The most paradoxical part is that the market has not punished the stock. While a plumber reporting two lean quarters would face a tax inspection, Meliá has seen its share price not only avoid collapsing but actually rise. The explanation circulating among investors is that the reported profit is anecdotal: what matters is the ability to generate cash and the cost structure that allows executives to line their pockets without going through the corporate tax filter.

Accounting sleight of hand or a one-off

Those who defend the company argue that this is an atypical quarter and that Meliá will return to its usual path of gains. However, testimony from former employees of the accounting department, who left the company "frightened" by the financial practices, reinforces the thesis that profit is manipulated through corporate expenses. The debate is not new, but the €30,000 figure has put the spotlight on a system that, legal or not, allows a multinational to pay the same in taxes as a self-employed worker.