Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation · WAB · FY2026 Q1 · Calendar Q2 2026
Wabtec Q1 2026: EPS beat, backlog tops $30B, guidance raised
Wabtec entered 2026 on resilient-demand footing: a multi-year backlog above $30B (up 38%), the first commercial EVO Modernization build, and a multibillion-dollar mining order. Despite near-term Section 232 tariff margin pressure, management raised adjusted EPS guidance to $10.25-$10.65 (~17% growth at midpoint) while holding revenue guidance, signaling confidence that international demand and acquisition synergies can sustain earnings growth over the coming year.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensusMarket reaction
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Transcript intelligence
What changed
Q1 2026 sales grew 13% to $3.0B (slowing from 15% in Q4 2025) and adjusted EPS rose 19% (vs 25% prior quarter). Adjusted EPS of $2.71 beat the $2.51 consensus (+8%), while revenue of $2.95B was roughly in line with the $2.963B estimate. Multi-year backlog expanded to over $30B (up 38%), up from over $27B a quarter earlier. Management raised adjusted EPS guidance to $10.25-$10.65, citing favorable currency and tax effects plus tariff pressure that is expected to ease in H2.
Guidance delta
Adjusted EPS guidance raised to $10.25-$10.65, about 17% growth at the midpoint, while revenue guidance was held unchanged. Management sees tariffs pressuring margins in the first half of the year, with the impact expected to dissipate in the second half.
Key takeaways
- Q1 revenue rose 13% to $3.0B with adjusted EPS up 19% year over year
- Multi-year backlog surpassed $30B, up 38%, with 12-month backlog up 13%
- Adjusted EPS guidance raised to $10.25-$10.65 (~17% growth at midpoint) on a revenue outlook held unchanged
- Tariff impacts expected to pressure margins in H1 before dissipating in H2
- Recent acquisitions (Dellner, Inspection Technologies, Frauscher) delivering early synergies
Management priorities
- Scale commercial production of the EVO modernization platform
- Accelerate integration of Inspection Technologies, Frauscher, and Dellner
- Expand the international sales pipeline in Africa, Kazakhstan, Brazil, and India
- Advance hybrid battery-electric locomotive programs
- Use Dellner technology to deepen transit-market penetration
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Analyst 52W Price Targets
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Sep 25, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JP Morgan | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Sep 21, 2026 |
| Citigroup | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Aug 13, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Susquehanna | Positive | Positive | Maintain | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Stephens & Co. | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Keybanc | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Rothschild & Co | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Mar 26, 2026 |
| Wolfe Research | Outperform | Peer Perform | Upgrade | Jan 8, 2026 |
| B of A Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 13, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Apr 24, 2025 |
| TD Cowen | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Apr 25, 2024 |
| Redburn Atlantic | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Feb 15, 2024 |
| Jefferies | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Jan 11, 2024 |
| Raymond James | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jul 28, 2023 |
| Atlantic Equities | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Feb 16, 2023 |
| Cowen & Co. | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Apr 15, 2020 |
| Buckingham Research | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Oct 18, 2019 |
| Buckingham | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Oct 18, 2019 |
| Bank of America | Underperform | Underperform | Maintain | Oct 16, 2019 |
| Citi | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Jul 10, 2019 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 25, 2018 |
| Stifel | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 25, 2018 |
| Mizuho | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Jun 29, 2018 |
| Wellington Shields | Hold | Gradually Accumulate | Downgrade | May 16, 2018 |
| Deutsche Bank | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | May 14, 2018 |
| Seaport Global | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jan 4, 2018 |
| Edward Jones | Hold | Buy | Downgrade | Jul 26, 2017 |
| William Blair | Outperform | Market Perform | Upgrade | Dec 21, 2016 |
| Longbow Research | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Oct 25, 2016 |
| CLSA | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 30, 2016 |
| Wunderlich | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Oct 9, 2014 |
| Credit Suisse | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Sep 5, 2012 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $289.75. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stephens | Justin Long | $330 | $289.98 | +13.9% | Jul 23, 2026 |
| KeyBanc | Analyst unavailable | $340 | $289.98 | +17.3% | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Susquehanna | Analyst unavailable | $340 | $289.98 | +17.3% | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $355 | $289.98 | +22.5% | Jul 23, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $318 | $266.64 | +9.7% | Apr 27, 2026 |
| Wolfe Research | Analyst unavailable | $303 | $268.82 | +4.6% | Apr 23, 2026 |
| Susquehanna | Bascome Majors | $305 | $261.47 | +5.3% | Apr 23, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $291 | $261.47 | +0.4% | Apr 22, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $315 | $258.8 | +8.7% | Feb 17, 2026 |
| Susquehanna | Bascome Majors | $300 | $261.15 | +3.5% | Feb 12, 2026 |
| KeyBanc | Steve Barger | $308 | $254.42 | +6.3% | Feb 12, 2026 |
| Susquehanna | Bascome Majors | $280 | $232.6 | -3.4% | Jan 26, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Angel Castillo | $264 | $224.9 | -8.9% | Jan 12, 2026 |
| Wolfe Research | Analyst unavailable | $245 | $216.62 | -15.4% | Jan 8, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $221 | $204.27 | -23.7% | Nov 13, 2025 |
| Susquehanna | Bascome Majors | $240 | $195.71 | -17.2% | Oct 23, 2025 |
| KeyBanc | Steve Barger | $240 | $205.87 | -17.2% | Jun 24, 2025 |
| Stephens | Justin Long | $205 | $187.34 | -29.2% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| Susquehanna | Bascome Majors | $220 | $191.15 | -24.1% | Oct 21, 2024 |
| KeyBanc | Steve Barger | $185 | $163.38 | -36.2% | Apr 25, 2024 |
| Stephens | Justin Long | $180 | $163.38 | -37.9% | Apr 25, 2024 |
| Jefferies | Saree Boroditsky | $150 | $126.99 | -48.2% | Jan 11, 2024 |
| Raymond James | Raymond James Raymond James | $115 | $100.19 | -60.3% | Dec 16, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $106 | $103.86 | -63.4% | Dec 14, 2022 |
| Raymond James | Felix Boeschen | $103 | $94.83 | -64.5% | Aug 18, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $87 | $93.49 | -70.0% | Aug 8, 2022 |
| Stephens | Analyst unavailable | $110 | $94.42 | -62.0% | Aug 8, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $84 | $83.45 | -71.0% | Jul 18, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $113 | $91.59 | -61.0% | May 2, 2022 |
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Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationWestinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation (WAB) delivers a comprehensive suite of advanced technological solutions, equipment, and services tailored for the global freight railway and urban mass transit sectors. Its operations are bifurcated into two principal divisions: Freight and Transit. The Freight segment develops, produces, and maintains critical components for both newly manufactured and operational freight carriages and locomotives. This includes constructing brand-new commuter-focused locomotives, undertaking comprehensive rebuilding of freight locomotives, and delivering sophisticated railway electronic systems, positive train control (PTC) technology, signal design expertise, and related engineering provisions. This segment also furnishes essential heat exchange and cooling apparatus. Its clientele encompasses major publicly listed railway operators, equipment leasing firms, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of locomotives and freight cars, and various utility companies.…
Historical context
All WAB earningsIndustrials peers this season
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:12.209961+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-09-25T15:21:07.399910+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-09-25T15:21:07.396709+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-09-25. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.