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Zebra Technologies Lifts 2026 Outlook After Broad-Based Growth Drives Quarterly Beat; Shares Jump

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Zebra Technologies Lifts 2026 Outlook After Broad-Based Growth Drives Quarterly Beat; Shares Jump

Zebra Technologies (ZBRA) raised its full-year guidance after reporting fiscal first-quarter results above Wall Street's estimates amid broad-based growth across segments and regions, sending the company's shares surging Tuesday.

The manufacturer of printers for barcodes, plastic cards and radio-frequency identification tags now expects 2026 non-GAAP earnings of $18.30 to $18.70 a share, compared with its previous outlook range of $17.70 to $18.30. Analysts in a FactSet survey expect non-GAAP EPS of $17.82.

The company now projects full-year sales to grow between 10% and 14%, up from its prior guidance range of 9% to 13% growth.

"Our business momentum and progress in navigating the current memory supply environment gives us confidence in raising our outlook for the full year," Chief Executive Bill Burns said on an earnings conference call Tuesday, according to a FactSet transcript.

For the quarter through April 4, Zebra Technologies reported adjusted EPS of $4.75, up from $4.02 a year earlier, while net sales jumped 14% to $1.5 billion. The results topped the Street's expectations for $4.25 and $1.48 billion, respectively.

"We delivered results near the high-end of our outlook, driven by our team's strong execution and positive demand trends across our portfolio," Burns told analysts. "We achieved growth across both our segments and all regions with outperformance in our manufacturing end markets."

Zebra Technologies shares soared 14% in afternoon trade. The stock is up 4.7% so far this year.

The company forecasts second-quarter non-GAAP EPS of $4.20 to $4.50 on sales growth between 14% and 17%. The consensus is for non-GAAP EPS of $4.14.

The guidance takes into account factors such as previously announced price hikes and "constrained" memory availability, Chief Financial Officer Nathan Winters said on the call.

"We currently have line of sight to the supply we need to support our outlook," Winters told analysts. "The component pricing trajectory for the year is tracking in line with our prior guidance."

Price: $254.07, Change: $+37.11, Percent Change: +17.10%

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