TLDR
- Vertiv posted Q1 adjusted EPS of $1.17, beating the $1.00 consensus by $0.17
- Revenue hit $2.65 billion, up 30% year-over-year, edging past estimates
- Full-year revenue guidance midpoint of $13.75 billion came in below Wall Street’s $13.7 billion consensus
- Full-year adjusted EPS guidance raised to $6.30–$6.40, well above the $6.16 consensus
- Stock dropped over 5% in pre-market trading despite the earnings beat
Vertiv Holdings (VRT) delivered a strong first quarter on paper, but the market wasn’t impressed. The stock fell more than 5% in pre-market trading on Wednesday after the company’s full-year revenue outlook landed below what analysts were hoping for.
Q1 adjusted EPS came in at $1.17, beating the $1.00 consensus by $0.17. Revenue reached $2.65 billion, up 30% from $2.04 billion in Q1 2025, and nudged past the $2.63 billion estimate.
The Americas region was the clear standout, posting organic sales growth of 44%, driven by strong data center demand.
$VRT Q1’26 EARNINGS HIGHLIGHTS
🔹 Revenue: $2.65B (Est. $2.64B) 🟢; +30% YoY
🔹 Adj. EPS: $1.17 (Est. $1.01) 🟢
🔹 Adjusted Operating Margin: 20.8% (Est. 19.4%) 🟢; +430 bps YoY
🔹 Operating Cash Flow: $767M
🔹 Adjusted Free Cash Flow: $653M
🔹 Americas Net Sales: $1.81B (Est.… pic.twitter.com/9eAWXuz2dQ— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) April 22, 2026
Adjusted operating margin expanded 430 basis points to 20.8%. Adjusted free cash flow jumped 147% year-over-year to $653 million.
CEO Giordano Albertazzi pointed to the company’s ability to deliver at scale. “Our investments in technology and capacity, combined with strategic acquisitions, are translating into market share gains,” he said.
Revenue Guidance Disappoints
Despite the strong quarter, Vertiv’s full-year revenue guidance is where things got tricky. The company guided for fiscal 2026 revenue of $13.5 billion to $14 billion — a midpoint of $13.75 billion that sits just above the $13.7 billion analyst consensus, though some reports suggest it fell short of certain expectations on Wall Street.
On the earnings side, Vertiv raised its full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $6.30–$6.40, with a midpoint of $6.35 — well ahead of the $6.16 consensus. That’s a meaningful raise, but the revenue picture overshadowed it.
For Q2, the company sees revenue of $3.25 billion to $3.45 billion and adjusted EPS of $1.37 to $1.43, implying year-over-year EPS growth of 44% to 51% at the midpoint.
Analyst and Insider Activity
The analyst community remains broadly supportive. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage in April with an “outperform” rating and a $345 price target. Barclays raised its target to $300 with an “overweight” rating. Of 26 analysts covering the stock, 21 rate it a Buy, four a Hold, and one a Sell.
Zacks did lower its rating from “strong-buy” to “hold” earlier this month, and Wall Street Zen made a similar move in March.
On the insider front, Director Edward Monser sold 77,294 shares in early March at an average of $245.49, cutting his position by over 82%. Chairman David Cote sold 40,000 shares in late February at $255.29. Insiders have sold nearly 490,000 shares worth over $123 million in the past quarter.
Institutional investors hold around 89.92% of the stock. VRT opened Wednesday at $311.77, with a 12-month range of $69.00 to $323.04.
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