Report date: Tuesday, August 4, 2026, before market open. AMETEK will issue its second quarter 2026 earnings release before the market opens on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, with the investor conference call beginning at 8:30 AM ET.
Stock setup: AME closed at $243.81 on Aug 3, near all-time highs, up from roughly $218 in early April. The average analyst price target sits around $263, implying the Street sees further upside, and the stock carries a "Moderate Buy" consensus (mix of Strong Buy/Buy and Hold ratings, ~21 analysts covering).
Q1 2026 was a blowout quarter that raises the stakes for Q2. Highlights from the April 30 report:
Off the back of that beat, management raised full-year guidance and set explicit Q2 targets: "For 2026, we now expect overall sales to be up high single digits compared to 2025. Adjusted earnings per diluted share are now expected to be in the range of $7.94 to $8.14, up 7% to 10% over the comparable basis for 2025." For the second quarter, overall sales are expected to be up high single digits, with adjusted EPS in a range of $1.96 to $2.00 per share, up 10% to 12% year-over-year.
Wall Street is essentially at the top end of guidance: analysts expect ~$1.99 adjusted EPS (up roughly 12% y/y) on revenue of approximately $1.95–$2.0 billion, representing about 10% year-over-year growth. AMETEK has beaten EPS estimates in each of the last four quarters, most recently by 3.7% in Q1, and it has a positive earnings-revision trend heading into the print. Revenue has historically been the tougher comp — the company has missed Wall Street's revenue estimate multiple times over the last two years — so a beat on the top line, not just EPS, would be a notable positive signal.
Orders cadence after a record Q1. The Q1 orders beat (23% growth, record backlog) invited questions about pull-forward. Management pushed back firmly: "I don't think there was much pull ahead at all... EIG is just beginning to pick up. So I think the order strength will continue." Investors will want confirmation that the EIG order inflection (process/power businesses) is sustaining and that large lumpy orders (defense, space, nuclear, semiconductor/data-center) keep flowing rather than reversing.
Segment/end-market trajectory. On the Q1 call management raised full-year organic guidance for Process (low-to-mid singles) and Aerospace & Defense (to ~10%, given "about 60% of that is defense and about 40% of that is commercial... Defense is knocking it out of the park"), while Power and Automation & Engineered Solutions were reaffirmed at mid-single-digit growth. Watch for confirmation of these trends, plus commentary on Medical (Paragon-led strength in Q1, but management flagged "tougher comps in the rest of the year" and a mid-single-digit full-year outlook) and EMG overall, where comps get materially tougher in H2.
Margins and incrementals. Q1 core incrementals were >50%; for the full year management guided to 35% incrementals and core margins up around 50 basis points, calling the guide deliberately conservative given macro uncertainty. Any change in tariff/input-cost commentary (management said it expects to "offset inflation, including tariffs with pricing") is worth tracking.
Macro/geopolitical exposure. AMETEK flagged only "approximately 2% of sales into the Middle East," with no order cancellations, and separately is monitoring international aviation fuel availability given its MRO exposure — "if there's a place that turns down, it will probably be [Europe/Asia]... the U.S. seems pretty insulated right now." Updates on both will matter given ongoing regional conflict headlines.
This is arguably the most important overlay to the quarter. On May 6, 2026, AMETEK announced its largest deal in years:
AMETEK backed this up with financing: in June it amended its revolver to $3.5 billion and put in place a new $4.0 billion senior unsecured term loan facility (three tranches, 3/4/5-year maturities) specifically to fund Indicor, terminating its earlier $5.0 billion bridge commitment. Given the "H2 2026" close target, investors should listen closely for: (1) an updated timeline/regulatory status, (2) any additional color on integration plans and cost synergies, (3) pro forma leverage and the path back toward AMETEK's target balance sheet, and (4) whether this now-larger deal (roughly 15% of AMETEK's ~$7.5B revenue base) crowds out near-term bolt-on M&A — a topic CEO Dave Zapico deflected on the Q1 call by noting AMETEK's "policy is not to comment on market rumors or speculation related to M&A activity."
Separately, AMETEK also signed a smaller, complementary deal the same day as Q1 earnings: a definitive agreement to acquire First Aviation Services, "a leading provider of defense and aviation MRO services as well as proprietary part design and manufacturing," with about $80 million in annual sales, expanding AMETEK's defense aftermarket capabilities. Status/closing updates on this smaller deal may also surface.
Pre-Indicor, AMETEK's balance sheet was in excellent shape: gross debt-to-EBITDA of 0.9x and net debt-to-EBITDA of 0.7x at Q1-end, with capacity to deploy "well over $5 billion" on growth initiatives while retaining an investment-grade rating. The company also raised its quarterly dividend by 10% to $0.34 per share, its seventh consecutive year of 10%-plus annual dividend increases. Post-Indicor, leverage will step up toward ~2.3x at closing — still investment-grade territory, but a meaningful shift from the ultra-low leverage AMETEK has run historically, and a topic likely to draw analyst questions on capital allocation priorities (further M&A vs. buybacks vs. debt paydown) over the next several quarters.
Going into Tuesday's print, AMETEK carries strong momentum: a record Q1, record backlog, raised guidance, and consensus expecting continued double-digit EPS growth (~$1.99, toward the high end of the $1.96–$2.00 guide) on ~10% revenue growth. The company's track record of conservative guidance and consistent beats favors another "beat-and-raise" outcome, but the stock is already trading near highs and pricing in a lot of good news. The more consequential storyline for long-term investors may not be the quarter itself but management's updated commentary on the $5.0 billion Indicor acquisition — its financing, integration, synergy realization, and expected closing timeline — since it materially changes AMETEK's leverage profile, portfolio mix, and near-term M&A capacity relative to the disciplined, bolt-on-centric model investors are used to.