Madison Air Solutions Corp (MAIR) · Nov 5, 2026 · Earnings
Beat — Adjusted EPS $0.38 vs ~$0.29 consensus; sales $1.127B vs ~$1.06B
Madison Air’s Q3 earnings beat consensus and lifted 2026 guidance, with strong commercial demand offset by softer margins and cash flow.
Madison Air is a newly public air-quality platform expanding its commercial and data-center cooling exposure while integrating AprilAire and preparing a roughly $5.4 billion ebm-papst acquisition. The business is being built around mission-critical cooling, air movement and healthier-air applications, with the pending deal intended to add technology and international reach.
The quarter cleared the market’s bar by a meaningful margin. Adjusted EPS was $0.38 versus a published consensus near $0.29, while sales reached $1.127 billion versus roughly $1.06 billion expected. That is not just acquisition-led growth: third-quarter sales rose 25% year over year, and Commercial sales jumped 39.3%, led by cooling, air movement and heat solutions.
| Metric | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Consensus / prior guidance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net sales (Financial Highlights) | $1,126.7M (+25.4%) | $898.4M | ~$1.06B consensus |
| Adjusted EPS (EPS reconciliation) | $0.38 (+35.7%) | $0.28 | ~$0.29 consensus |
| Adjusted EBITDA (Financial Highlights) | $298.3M (+18.6%) | $251.5M | — |
| Adjusted EBITDA margin (Financial Highlights) | 26.5% (-150 bps) | 28.0% | — |
| FY net sales guidance (Guidance table) | $4,050–$4,125M | — | $3,825–$3,925M prior |
| FY adjusted EBITDA guidance (Guidance table) | $1,040–$1,070M | — | $1,020–$1,065M prior |
The outlook was raised, not merely reaffirmed. Management lifted the full-year sales range by about $225 million at the midpoint and nudged up the EBITDA range, supported by stronger orders, a record $3.2 billion backlog and improved visibility. 〔0〕 The sales increase is the more important signal: EBITDA guidance rose only modestly, implying the company is prioritizing growth while absorbing ramp and mix costs.
The main blemish is margin quality, especially in the strategic growth areas. Adjusted EBITDA grew 19%, but margin fell to 26.5% from 28.0% as data-center cooling growth brought a less favorable mix, new-program ramp costs and inflation. Gross margin also declined to 37.5% from 40.6%. That makes the quarter a demand and execution win, but not yet a clean margin-recovery story. 〔1〕
Commercial execution is doing most of the work, while Residential remains more acquisition-dependent. Nine-month Commercial organic sales increased 26.7%, whereas Residential organic sales declined 0.4%; Residential’s reported growth was largely supplied by the AprilAire acquisition. That distinction matters because the current growth engine is strongest in commercial and data-center applications, not uniformly across the portfolio.
Cash generation was less impressive than the earnings result. Nine-month free cash flow declined to $298.0 million from $312.4 million despite substantially higher net income, and FCF conversion fell to 135% from 231%. The balance sheet is far healthier after the equity financing, but the company is still carrying the execution burden of closing and integrating ebm-papst.
The ebm-papst deal remains the next major test rather than a new surprise. Financing is secured and integration planning is underway, but the acquisition has not closed; management still expects completion soon after year-end. 〔2〕
Bottom line: Madison Air delivered a genuine earnings and sales beat and raised its 2026 outlook, strengthening the growth story. The offset is that margins and cash conversion weakened, so the next proof point is whether demand converts into profitable execution while the ebm-papst transaction moves toward closing.
ebm-papst acquisition closing, soon after year-end
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