Symbotic, Inc. SYM reported mixed third-quarter fiscal 2026 results. Earnings missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate, while revenues surpassed the same.
Quarterly earnings were 9 cents per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 12 cents by 25%. In the year-ago quarter, the company had reported a loss of 5 cents per share. Meanwhile, total revenues of $720.8 million beat the consensus mark of $715 million by 0.9% and increased 21.7% year over year.
Symbotic shares have declined 26.4% over the past year, underperforming the S&P 500 composite’s 22.6% increase.
SYM’s Segmental Performance
Systems revenues, accounting for 93.1% of total revenues, increased 20% year over year to $671 million. The company started 11 new system deployments in the fiscal third quarter, bringing the total number of systems under deployment to 77 at quarter-end.
Software maintenance and support revenues increased 57% year over year to $12.8 million, aided by growth in operational systems under support contracts. Operations services revenues totaled $37.1 million, up 49% year over year, primarily due to an increase in operational systems receiving these services.
SYM’s Margins Expand
Adjusted EBITDA more than doubled to $95.2 million from $45.4 million in the year-ago quarter. The adjusted EBITDA margin expanded about 550 basis points year over year to 13.2%.
Adjusted gross profit was $179.9 million, up 41.4% year over year. The adjusted gross profit margin improved 350 basis points year over year to 25% on strong project execution, cost discipline, scale benefits and a favorable revenue mix.
SYM reported a backlog of approximately $22.5 billion. The sequential decline primarily reflected revenues recognized during the third quarter, partly offset by pricing adjustments on newly started projects and the addition of a second Southern Glazer’s site.
SYM’s Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Figures
Symbotic exited the third quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1.75 billion compared with $2 billion at the end of the preceding quarter. The company used $147.3 million of cash in operating activities during the third quarter and reported negative free cash flow of $164.6 million, mainly reflecting the timing of customer receipts and cash usage related to project activity.
SYM’s Guidance
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, the company expects revenues in the range of $760-$780 million. The midpoint of the guided range is $770 million.
Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be between $100 million and $105 million.
SYM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Q2 Performances of Other Transportation Companies
Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies WAB, operating as Wabtec Corporation, reported encouraging second-quarter 2026 results, wherein both earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate and increased year over year.
Quarterly adjusted earnings of $2.76 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.63 by 4.9% and increased 21.6% year over year, owing to higher sales and operating margin expansion.
Revenues climbed 17.5% to $3.18 billion and surpassed the consensus mark of $3.08 billion by 3.2%.
United Airlines Holdings, Inc. UAL reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.99 per share, down 48.6% year over year but above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.92 by 3.7%.
Operating revenues rose 16% to $17.67 billion and were essentially in line with the $17.68 billion consensus mark. A 12.1% increase in total revenues per available seat mile or TRASM, and broad-based gains across premium, loyalty and cargo revenues, supported the top line despite sharply higher fuel costs.
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Wabtec (WAB): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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