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Fortive Corp.: Q2 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q2 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 29 July 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 1 raised. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Revenue grew on reported and core bases: Revenue was $1,097M against $1,016M a year earlier, up 7.9% reported and 6.7% core. Core growth was 5.3% in the first quarter, which had a selling-day tailwind. Source
  • Core growth accelerated, management said: Management described core revenue growth as accelerated, with adjusted EBITDA up 12% and adjusted EPS growth of 28%. Adjusted EBITDA was $323M. Source
  • Intelligent Operating Solutions revenue up 8.8%: Revenue was $758M against $697M, up 8.8% reported and 7.4% core. GAAP operating margin was 26.8%, against 24.5%. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin rose 110 bps: Adjusted EBITDA was $323M, up 12.0%, and the adjusted EBITDA margin was 29.5% against 28.4% a year earlier. Source
  • Share repurchases of about $200M: About $200M of shares were repurchased in Q2, roughly 3 million shares or 1% of diluted shares. Over four quarters the total is about $2 billion, about 11% of shares outstanding. Source
  • Operating and free cash flow rose: Q2 operating cash flow was $299M and free cash flow $271M, against $205M and $180M a year earlier. Trailing twelve-month free cash flow was $1,044M. Source
  • Early evidence from growth investments: Management said its investments in innovation, commercial acceleration and recurring customer value are contributing to improved growth and earnings, citing early evidence. Source

“Core revenue growth accelerated to 6.7%, adjusted EBITDA grew 12%, and adjusted EPS growth was 28% in the quarter.”

Olumide Soroye, President and CEO

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Adjusted diluted EPS SourceFY 2026$2.95 to $3.05Raised from $2.90 to $3.00

What changed from last quarter

  • Guidance raised: FY 2026 adjusted diluted EPS range raised to $2.95 to $3.05 from $2.90 to $3.00. Source
  • New: Adjusted measures now exclude IEEPA tariff refunds; the first-quarter release did not list this adjustment. Source
  • New: The cash flow statement shows $58.1M paid for acquisitions in the first half of 2026, against none in the first half of 2025. The businesses are not named. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Revenue grew on reported and core bases: Revenue was $1,097M against $1,016M a year earlier, up 7.9% reported and 6.7% core. Core growth was 5.3% in the first quarter, which had a selling-day tailwind. Source
  • Core growth accelerated, management said: Management described core revenue growth as accelerated, with adjusted EBITDA up 12% and adjusted EPS growth of 28%. Adjusted EBITDA was $323M. Source
  • GAAP and adjusted EPS both rose: GAAP diluted EPS was $0.51 against $0.33, and GAAP net earnings were $157M, up 40.9%. Adjusted diluted EPS was $0.74 on 307.6M diluted shares, against $0.58 on 341.7M. Source
  • Operating profit rose to $209.9M: Operating profit was $209.9M against $169.8M. Interest expense, net was $35.4M against $32.1M. Source

Segments and brands

  • Intelligent Operating Solutions revenue up 8.8%: Revenue was $758M against $697M, up 8.8% reported and 7.4% core. GAAP operating margin was 26.8%, against 24.5%. Source
  • Intelligent Operating Solutions margin higher: Segment adjusted EBITDA was $264M, a 34.9% margin, against 33.8% a year earlier. Source
  • Advanced Healthcare revenue up 6.0%: Revenue was $339M against $320M, up 6.0% reported and 5.3% core. GAAP operating margin was 11.3%, against 11.2%. Source
  • Healthcare adjusted margin eased: Segment adjusted EBITDA was $88M, a 26.1% margin against 26.9%, a decline of 80 basis points. Source
  • Brands described as market leaders: The release describes both segments as holding iconic inventor brands with leading positions in their markets. Source

“We are seeing early evidence that our investments in innovation acceleration, commercial acceleration, and recurring customer value are contributing to improved growth and earnings performance.”

Olumide Soroye, President and CEO

Costs, margins and pricing

  • Adjusted EBITDA margin rose 110 bps: Adjusted EBITDA was $323M, up 12.0%, and the adjusted EBITDA margin was 29.5% against 28.4% a year earlier. Source
  • SG&A rose more slowly than sales: Gross profit was $695.3M against $645.5M. SG&A was $417.9M against $408.5M, and R&D was $67.5M against $67.2M. Source
  • Restructuring charges fell: Pretax discrete restructuring charges were $2.4M against $8.0M. Acquisition, divestiture and Separation related items were $1.4M against $1.6M. Source
  • Income tax expense fell: Income taxes were $22.2M against $28.0M, on pretax earnings of $179.5M against $139.6M a year earlier. Source

Capital, cash and returns to shareholders

  • Share repurchases of about $200M: About $200M of shares were repurchased in Q2, roughly 3 million shares or 1% of diluted shares. Over four quarters the total is about $2 billion, about 11% of shares outstanding. Source
  • Operating and free cash flow rose: Q2 operating cash flow was $299M and free cash flow $271M, against $205M and $180M a year earlier. Trailing twelve-month free cash flow was $1,044M. Source
  • Six-month buybacks and dividends: Over six months, repurchases of common shares totaled $700.3M, commercial paper borrowings netted $433.6M, and dividend payments were $18.4M. Source
  • Current debt fell to nil: The current portion of long-term debt was nil at July 3, 2026, against $899.5M at December 31, 2025. Long-term debt was $3,509.3M against $2,306.5M. Source
  • Dividend cash held in escrow: $18.1M of restricted cash was held in escrow for dividend payments made to shareholders on July 6, 2026. Source

“We continue to be very confident in our medium-term financial framework”

Olumide Soroye, President and CEO

Strategy, investment and framework

  • Early evidence from growth investments: Management said its investments in innovation, commercial acceleration and recurring customer value are contributing to improved growth and earnings, citing early evidence. Source
  • Three pillars of Fortive Accelerated: Management reviewed progress on three pillars: growth acceleration through FBS Amplified, capital allocation with a focus on best relative returns, and investor trust. Source
  • Medium-term framework described as intact: The release says the medium-term financial framework is solidly intact, alongside continued progress on the Fortive Accelerated strategy. Source
  • Management confident in framework: Management said it is very confident in the medium-term financial framework. Source

Non-GAAP and core growth bridge

  • Adjusted net earnings were $228.5M: Adjusted net earnings were $228.5M and adjusted EPS $0.74, against $197.8M and $0.58 a year earlier. Source
  • Amortization is the largest adjustment: Pretax amortization of acquisition-related intangibles was $91.5M, or $0.30 per diluted share, excluded from adjusted earnings. Source
  • Euro debt gain and tariff refunds excluded: Pretax gains of $4.6M on Euro-denominated debt and $4.5M of IEEPA tariff refunds were excluded from adjusted EBITDA in Q2. Source
  • Currency and deals trimmed reported growth: Currency translation reduced total reported growth by 0.9 points and acquisitions and divestitures by 0.3 points, against a 2.4-point currency reduction in the first quarter. Source

Coming up, as management said on 29 July 2026

  • Restructuring plan completion expected: The discrete restructuring plan tied to the Separation is expected to be completed by the second half of 2026. Source

Risks management discussed

  • Regulatory: Management said the timing and amount of IEEPA tariff refund gains may not reflect operating results in the period they are recognized. Source
  • External: Management said foreign currency fluctuations continue to be volatile, which is the reason given for excluding Euro-denominated debt remeasurement from adjusted results. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • On track: The first-quarter release said the company remained firmly on track to deliver the medium-term financial framework.
  • Met: Management said it continued to deliver on its capital allocation commitment through about $200M of repurchases in Q2. Source
  • Not stated: The first-quarter release said adjusted EPS was trending toward the upper half of the $2.90 to $3.00 range. The second-quarter release raised the range.

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.