Specialty vehicles contractor Oshkosh (NYSE: OSK) reported Q1 CY2026 results topping the market’s revenue expectations, but sales were flat year on year at $2.32 billion. The company’s full-year revenue guidance of $11 billion at the midpoint came in 0.7% above analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.85 per share was 18.3% below analysts’ consensus estimates.

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“We delivered first quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.85 reflecting lower results in our Access and Vocational segments compared with last year,” said John Pfeifer, president and chief executive officer of Oshkosh Corporation.

Company Overview

Oshkosh (NYSE: OSK) manufactures specialty vehicles for the defense, fire, emergency, and commercial industry, operating various brand subsidiaries within each industry.

Revenue Growth

Reviewing a company’s long-term sales performance reveals insights into its quality. Any business can have short-term success, but a top-tier one grows for years. Thankfully, Oshkosh’s 8.8% annualized revenue growth over the last five years was decent. Its growth was slightly above the average industrials company and shows its offerings resonate with customers.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within industrials, a half-decade historical view may miss cycles, industry trends, or a company capitalizing on catalysts such as a new contract win or a successful product line. Oshkosh’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed as its annualized revenue growth of 2.5% 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.

We can dig further into the company’s revenue dynamics by analyzing its backlog, or the value of its outstanding orders that have not yet been executed or delivered. Oshkosh’s backlog reached $14.54 billion in the latest quarter and averaged 4.7% year-on-year declines over the last two years. Because this number is lower than its revenue growth, we can see the company hasn’t secured enough new orders to maintain its growth rate in the future.

This quarter, Oshkosh’s $2.32 billion of revenue was flat year on year but beat Wall Street’s estimates by 0.8%.

Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 7.7% over the next 12 months, an improvement versus the last two years. This projection is above average for the sector and implies its newer products and services will spur better top-line performance.

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Operating Margin

Oshkosh was profitable over the last five years but held back by its large cost base. Its average operating margin of 7.6% was weak for an industrials business. This result isn’t too surprising given its low gross margin as a starting point.

On the plus side, Oshkosh’s operating margin rose by 3 percentage points over the last five years, as its sales growth gave it operating leverage.

This quarter, Oshkosh generated an operating margin profit margin of 3.5%, down 4 percentage points year on year. Since Oshkosh’s operating margin decreased more than its gross margin, we can assume it was less efficient because expenses such as marketing, R&D, and administrative overhead increased.

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.

Oshkosh’s EPS grew at 13.3% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 8.8% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.

Diving into Oshkosh’s quality of earnings can give us a better understanding of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, Oshkosh’s operating margin declined this quarter but expanded by 3 percentage points over the last five years. Its share count also shrank by 8.6%, 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 Oshkosh, its two-year annual EPS declines of 6.8% mark a reversal from its (seemingly) healthy five-year trend. We hope Oshkosh can return to earnings growth in the future.

In Q1, Oshkosh reported adjusted EPS of $0.85, down from $1.92 in the same quarter last year. This print missed analysts’ estimates, but we care more about long-term adjusted EPS growth than short-term movements. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects Oshkosh’s full-year EPS of $9.72 to grow 27.8%.

Key Takeaways from Oshkosh’s Q1 Results

It was great to see Oshkosh’s full-year EPS guidance top analysts’ expectations. We were also glad its full-year revenue guidance slightly exceeded Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its adjusted operating income missed and its EBITDA fell short of Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, this was a softer quarter. The stock traded down 7.8% to $141.09 immediately after reporting.

Oshkosh underperformed this quarter, but does that create an opportunity to invest right now? 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).