Legence (NASDAQ:LGN) shares surged 9% in premarket trading after the company reported first-quarter results that topped analyst expectations and lifted its guidance for the full year.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $0.13, exceeding Wall Street forecasts of $0.08 by $0.05.
Revenue climbed to a record $1.04 billion, marking a 105% increase from $506.0 million in the same quarter last year. Excluding the contribution from the Bowers acquisition, revenue still increased 57% year-on-year.
Legence said the strong performance was driven by solid demand and strong project execution across its business platform, particularly within data center and technology-related markets.
Company Raises Second-Quarter and Full-Year Outlook
For the second quarter of 2026, Legence expects revenue between $1.05 billion and $1.1 billion. The midpoint of $1.075 billion came in well above analyst expectations of $930 million.
The company also raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to a range of $4.1 billion to $4.3 billion, compared with its previous forecast of $3.7 billion to $3.9 billion.
The midpoint of the updated outlook, at $4.2 billion, exceeded the market consensus estimate of $3.89 billion.
EBITDA Forecast Increased Following Strong Quarter
Legence said it expects second-quarter adjusted EBITDA between $115 million and $125 million.
For the full year, adjusted EBITDA guidance was increased to a range of $470 million to $490 million from the prior forecast of $400 million to $430 million.
Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter rose 132% year-on-year to $118.1 million from $50.8 million in the prior-year period.
CEO Highlights Demand and Acquisition Contributions
Chief executive Jeff Sprau said the company benefited from both organic growth and recent acquisitions.
“Legence delivered a strong start to the year, as our first quarter 2026 results reflect robust demand and exceptional project execution across the platform,” Sprau said. “Revenues more than doubled year over year, from a combination of healthy organic growth in both Installation & Maintenance and Engineering & Consulting segments, alongside significant contributions from recent acquisitions, particularly The Bowers Group.”
Backlog and Awards Reach Record Levels
The company also reported record total backlog and awards of $5.38 billion, representing a 104% increase from a year earlier.
Legence posted a first-quarter book-to-bill ratio of 1.2x, indicating orders continued to outpace recognized revenue during the period.