Cash management services provider Brink's (NYSE: BCO) reported Q1 CY2026 results exceeding the market’s revenue expectations, with sales up 10.3% year on year to $1.38 billion. The company expects next quarter’s revenue to be around $1.4 billion, close to analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.80 per share was 13% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Mark Eubanks, president and CEO, said: “We delivered a strong first quarter, as we continue to make progress against our strategic priorities. Double-digit top-line growth featured strong performance in the higher-margin AMS, DRS and global services lines of business. Favorable revenue mix, good pricing discipline, and continued cost productivity drove EBITDA margin expansion in the quarter. We continue to deliver sustainable improvements in cash generation with trailing-twelve-month free cash flow surpassing $500 million in the quarter for the first time in our history."

Company Overview

Known for its iconic armored trucks that have been a fixture in American cities since 1859, Brink's (NYSE: BCO) provides secure transportation and management of cash and valuables for banks, retailers, and other businesses worldwide.

Revenue Growth

A company’s long-term performance is an indicator of its overall quality. Any business can experience short-term success, but top-performing ones enjoy sustained growth for years.

With $5.39 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Brink's is one of the larger companies in the business services industry and benefits from a well-known brand that influences purchasing decisions.

As you can see below, Brink's grew its sales at a solid 7.3% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. This is an encouraging starting point for our analysis because it shows Brink’s demand was higher than many business services companies.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within business services, a half-decade historical view may miss recent innovations or disruptive industry trends. Brink’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed as its annualized revenue growth of 4.6% over the last two years was below its five-year trend. We’re wary when companies in the sector see decelerations in revenue growth, as it could signal changing consumer tastes aided by low switching costs.

This quarter, Brink's reported year-on-year revenue growth of 10.3%, and its $1.38 billion of revenue exceeded Wall Street’s estimates by 0.9%. Company management is currently guiding for a 7.7% year-on-year increase in sales next quarter.

Looking further ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 5.9% over the next 12 months, similar to its two-year rate. This projection is above the sector average and implies its newer products and services will fuel better top-line performance.

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Adjusted Operating Margin

Brink's has managed its cost base well over the last five years. It demonstrated solid profitability for a business services business, producing an average adjusted operating margin of 12.4%.

Looking at the trend in its profitability, Brink’s adjusted operating margin rose by 1.1 percentage points over the last five years, as its sales growth gave it operating leverage.

In Q1, Brink's generated an adjusted operating margin profit margin of 8.5%, down 3.6 percentage points year on year. This contraction shows it was less efficient because its expenses grew faster than its revenue.

Earnings Per Share

We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.

Brink’s EPS grew at 15.5% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 7.3% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.

We can take a deeper look into Brink’s earnings quality to better understand the drivers of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, Brink’s adjusted operating margin declined this quarter but expanded by 1.1 percentage points over the last five years. Its share count also shrank by 17.7%, and these factors together are positive signs for shareholders because improving profitability and share buybacks turbocharge EPS growth relative to revenue growth.

Like with revenue, we analyze EPS over a more recent period because it can provide insight into an emerging theme or development for the business.

For Brink's, its two-year annual EPS growth of 5.5% was lower than its five-year trend. This wasn’t great, but at least the company was successful in other measures of financial health.

In Q1, Brink's reported adjusted EPS of $1.80, up from $1.62 in the same quarter last year. This print easily cleared analysts’ estimates, and shareholders should be content with the results. We also like to analyze expected EPS growth based on Wall Street analysts’ consensus projections, but there is insufficient data.

Key Takeaways from Brink’s Q1 Results

It was good to see Brink's beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. We were also happy its revenue narrowly outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its revenue guidance for next quarter was in line. Overall, this print had some key positives. The stock remained flat at $104.30 immediately after reporting.

Should you buy the stock or not? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).