The cleanest benchmark was prior guidance, not a published quarterly consensus. Before this release, the standing 2026 revenue expectation was the company’s $675–$685 million outlook, established earlier in 2026; the new $880–$900 million range lifts the midpoint by $210 million.
| Metric | Q2 2026 | Q2 2025 | H1 2026 | H1 2025 / prior reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $226.9M | $106.1M | $394.4M | $187.9M (Financial Highlights; Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations) |
| Organic revenue growth | 64% | — | 64% | — (Organic Growth reconciliation) |
| Adjusted EBITDA | $28.1M | $19.7M | $54.9M | $34.3M (Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation) |
| Adjusted EBITDA margin | 12.4% | 18.6% | 13.9% | 18.2% (Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation) |
| Gross profit margin | 10.8% | 13.9% | 12.5% | 13.1% (Adjusted Gross Profit reconciliation) |
| Backlog | $866M | $641M implied by 35% growth | — | — (Backlog section) |
| 2026 revenue guidance | $880–$900M | Prior midpoint $680M | — | — (2026 Consolidated Guidance; prior company outlook) |
Growth materially exceeded the old plan, with unusually strong organic momentum. Q2 revenue more than doubled year over year to $226.9 million, including 64% organic growth rather than acquisition-only expansion. Backlog also rose 35% to $866 million, improving forward revenue visibility, while the new guidance implies roughly 95% full-year growth at its midpoint (Financial Highlights; Backlog section; 2026 Consolidated Guidance).
The cost of that growth was a clear profitability reset. Adjusted EBITDA increased 43% in Q2 and 60% in the first half, but adjusted EBITDA margin fell to 12.4% from 18.6% year over year; adjusted gross margin dropped to 15.9% from 21.3%. Subcontracted labor, equipment rentals, weather disruption and faster corporate investment all pressured margins (Second Quarter Results; Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation). The company is now guiding to a 16%–18% full-year adjusted EBITDA margin, below its earlier 20%-plus margin framework, even though it says full-year adjusted EBITDA dollars should exceed the original plan (2026 Consolidated Guidance; Investor Presentation).
The acquisition adds strategic upside but is not part of the raised guidance. Allied Paving is being purchased for approximately $120 million, including $62 million cash and $58 million of stock, with $108 million of annual revenue and a reported 20.3% adjusted EBITDA margin. It could improve Atlanta vertical integration and margin capture, but the deal is expected to close in early October and the company explicitly excludes future-acquisition impact from current guidance (Allied Paving Acquisition; 2026 Consolidated Guidance).
Net read: a meaningful positive revision to the growth outlook, tempered by execution risk. Relative to the prior revenue expectation, this is a substantial upside reset. Relative to the prior profitability story, it is less clean: the company is scaling faster than expected, but current margins are well below the prior framework and management is spending ahead of that growth. The filing therefore lands as moderately positive versus expectations, with the key question shifting from demand generation to whether Cardinal can convert its backlog and acquisitions into the promised margin recovery.
Read the original 8-K on SEC EDGAR ↗