The Earnings Debate

We turn quarterly earnings calls into a fast-paced financial comedic debate. Our AI hosts (one skeptic and one optimist) agree on almost nothing. We cut through jargon, pressure-test claims, and spotlight the questions that matter. Rigorous analysis. Actual laughs. On the beat so you don't miss a beat.

The Earnings Debate is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 0 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 83. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts The Earnings Debate, a business show with 0 episodes published.

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  Episode #251

  Lowe's Companies, Inc. (LOW) Announced Q2 2026 Earnings on August 19, 2026, Reporting "sales of $26 billion"

  Aug 19, 202611 min

  Lowe's Companies, Inc. reported sales of $26 billion for the second quarter of fiscal 2026, which was up 8.3% from the second quarter of last year. Comparable sales for the second quarter rose 0.2%. The company delivered GAAP diluted earnings per share of $4.27 for the second quarter, and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $4.40 for the second quarter. Gross margin for the second quarter was 33%, down 80 basis points versus prior year adjusted gross margin, and SG&A was 17.2% of sales. The adjusted operating margin rate was 14% for the second quarter, down 62 basis points versus prior year adjusted operating margin. The company also generated $3.1 billion in free cash flow for the second quarter.CEO Marvin Ellison stated that "performance in Pro, online and home services helped to offset persistent macro pressures, softer DIY discretionary spend and the challenging weather during Memorial Day weekend." The company drove another quarter of growth in Pro, led by small and medium-sized Pro customers. In digital channels, Lowe's achieved online sales growth of 15.7% for the second quarter, aided by its online AI agent, Mylow, which has supported over 25 million questions. The company's MyLowe's Rewards loyalty program grew to more than 30 million members. Additionally, Ellison noted that the company's "perpetual productivity improvement initiatives, or PPI, continue to advance", including the deployment of self-watering plant tables in more than 700 stores.CFO Brandon Sink announced that the company is "updating our full year outlook in line with the bottom end of the previous guidance range" to reflect first half results, consumer demand, and housing trends. For the full year of fiscal 2026, Lowe's expects sales of approximately $92 billion, roughly flat comparable sales, an adjusted operating margin of approximately 11.6%, and adjusted diluted earnings per share of approximately $12.25. The company continues to expect full year capital expenditures of up to $2.5 billion. For the third quarter of fiscal 2026, the company expects comparable sales to be in line with its full year outlook and adjusted diluted earnings per share to be approximately 7% below prior year adjusted diluted earnings per share.In merchandising and partnerships, Lowe's completed the rollout of Cree lighting products exclusively in the home center channel, which includes a new 6-way bulb. Executive Vice President of Merchandising Bill Boltz noted that the company is welcoming Trager to its "already strong drilling lineup" as one of the leading brands in outdoor grilling, with products rolling out nationwide in select stores and online later this year. The company is also expanding its premium appliance assortment online, featuring brands like Bosch, KitchenAid, and LG Signature Cafe. In addition, the hard surfaces rollout of "Dow Tile" is scheduled to be completed in "hard services" in the third quarter.I can help turn these show notes into a custom visual graphic or draft some alternative promotional descriptions if you would like to explore other formats.

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  Episode #245

  AECOM (ACM) Announced Q3 2026 Earnings on August 11, 2026, Reporting "full year NSR of approximately $7.3 billion"

  Aug 19, 202612 min

  AECOM reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2026. The results included a "$337 million pretax charge" during the quarter that was "primarily the result of a delay in delivering a large construction management project." This project-related charge impacted third quarter net service revenue (NSR) and EBITDA by "$337 million," third quarter EPS by "$1.99," and third quarter cash flow included a "$185 million use." Americas NSR declined "29%" for the third quarter, and the Americas adjusted operating margin was "negative 16.1%," which was "18%" when excluding the construction management impact. In the International segment, third quarter NSR increased "4%," and adjusted operating margin was "14.3%." Despite the headwinds, AECOM delivered positive third quarter free cash flow of "$55 million." Excluding the project charge, adjusted EBITDA and EPS for the third quarter improved year-over-year by "5%" and "11%" respectively. Chief Executive Officer Troy Rudd and Chief Financial and Operations Officer Gaurav Kapoor detailed how the company is managing its legacy risk. Rudd noted that they "decided many years ago to no longer pursue design-build work for P3 clients in the construction management business." This project is expected to be complete "near the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2027." Meanwhile, the company's backlog grew "13% to a new all-time high" on a "1.6 book-to-burn across the business" for the third quarter, which includes a "1.8x in the Americas." President Lara Poloni highlighted strong market demand, noting that the pipeline with the Department of War, their "largest single client," increased by "approximately 30% in the quarter." In Canada, defense pipeline opportunities are up, and the government committed to "more than doubling that share to 5% of GDP by 2035." Additionally, Poloni reported that the Australia backlog was up "more than 40% year-over-year" and the U.K. business is progressing on the "Great Grid upgrade project."During the third quarter, AECOM secured notable awards, including "two of our largest recompetes ever" in the environment business, won in their own right without a joint venture. Post-quarter wins included a "10-year program management role" for a Canadian highway and bus transit project, as well as a "large rail project in Saudi Arabia." For full year fiscal 2026 guidance, AECOM now expects full year NSR of "approximately $7.3 billion," full year adjusted EBITDA of "$950 million," and full year adjusted EPS of "$4.05" at the midpoint of the ranges. Adjusted for the charge, they expect full year NSR of "$7.65 billion to $7.7 billion," and full year adjusted EBITDA and EPS of "$1.29 billion" and "$6" at the midpoint, which includes a raised expectation for full year adjusted EBITDA margin of "17.4%." Full year free cash flow is expected to be "$300 million." Looking to fiscal 2027, the remaining project completions will have a cash flow impact of "about $0.5 billion" in the first two quarters and year-on-year interest expense is estimated to be "$30 million to $35 million" higher.

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  Episode #250

  Target Corporation (TGT) Announced Q2 2027 Earnings on August 19, 2026, Reporting "net sales of $26.5 billion" for the quarter

  Aug 19, 202620 min

  Target Corporation reported financial results for the second quarter of 2026. For the quarter, net sales of $26.5 billion were 5.3% higher than last year, with comparable sales increasing 3.8% driven by a 3.6% increase in traffic. The company reported a second quarter gross margin rate of 33.7%, which was 4.7 percentage points higher than last year and included a $994 million pretax benefit from IEEPA tariff refunds. Target delivered second quarter GAAP and adjusted EPS of $4.11 compared with $2.05 last year, which includes a $1.65 benefit from the tariff refunds. Management highlighted a massive volume of in-store layout and space transformations during the quarter, including resetting nearly half of the center store grocery assortment, reimagining the Fun 101 floor pad, and replacing nearly three-quarters of decorative accessories in home. Target saw strong growth from digital initiatives as Target Plus marketplace GMV grew more than 40% and gross billings from Roundel grew nearly 20% during the quarter. Key partnership events included the Love Shack Fancy partnership, which was the largest limited-time collaboration in the company's history, alongside a successful Pokemon collaboration. Target also announced the appointment of its new Chief AI Officer, Chandu Nair, and plans to introduce Target Beauty Studio to more than 600 stores next month. For its full year outlook, Target raised its guidance for full year net sales growth to a range around 5%, which is 1 percentage point higher than its prior outlook. The company also raised its full year EPS guidance range to $9.90 to $10.90, up from the prior range of $7.50 to $8.50. Additionally, Target expects its full year operating margin rate, excluding tariff refunds, to be in a range around 0.5 percentage point higher than the prior year's adjusted rate of 4.6%. Management continues to plan for approximately $5 billion of capital expenditures for the full year and expects to have the capacity to resume share repurchases in the back half of the year.️ We can now write a comedy debate script between Morgan Moonshot and Bobby Beatdown based on these Q2 2027 results if you are ready to begin the podcast episode.

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  Episode #246

  Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (HIMS) Announced Q2 2026 Earnings on August 10, 2026, Reporting "In the second quarter, revenue grew nearly 40% year-over-year to more than $753 million."

  Aug 18, 202621 min

  Hims & Hers Health, Inc. reported that in the second quarter, "revenue grew nearly 40% year-over-year to more than $753 million". U.S. operations generated "$622 million of revenue", representing "domestic revenue growth" of "16% year-over-year", while international revenue increased over 17-fold year-over-year to "$131 million". Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter was "$60 million, representing an 8% adjusted EBITDA margin". These financial results exclude approximately "$81 million of nonrecurring costs" incurred during the quarter. GAAP net income for the second quarter was a loss of "$86 million", impacted by nonrecurring acquisition, restructuring, and legal costs. Gross margins in the second quarter were "64%, down approximately 6 points quarter-over-quarter on an adjusted basis". During the quarter, operating cash flow was "negative $36 million" and free cash flow was "negative $68 million".The company ended the quarter with "nearly 3 million subscribers" on its platform, having added "300,000 net new subscribers" in the second quarter. Management emphasized the company's investment in artificial intelligence, highlighting the phased rollout of a new AI-native care experience for Hers weight loss customers that has reduced nonclinical tasks handled by support teams by "nearly 50%", with AI answering "80% of their questions" to support their treatment journey. To accelerate these efforts, the company plans to open an "AI R&D lab in Menlo Park". In other specialties, testosterone is scaling "faster than any other specialty outside of weight loss", with plans to expand into "injectable and oral TRT" before the end of the year. Additionally, Hims & Hers is developing a "best-in-class peptides experience" and plans to offer access to allowed peptides such as sermorelin, glutathione, and NAD+ "before the end of the year". The company also closed its acquisition of Eucalyptus in June, which contributed "approximately $40 million of revenue in the second quarter". On the regulatory side, the Federal Trade Commission filed a complaint against the company on July 29, which the company intends to "defend vigorously".Looking ahead, management raised its "2026 revenue outlook to $3.1 billion to $3.3 billion", representing a "year-over-year increase of 32% to 41%". The company expects full year 2026 adjusted EBITDA to be "between $275 million and $325 million", representing "an adjusted EBITDA margin of 9% at the midpoint of both ranges". For the third quarter, the company anticipates revenue in the range of "$880 million to $900 million", representing "a year-over-year increase of approximately 47% to 50%", and adjusted EBITDA of "$75 million to $95 million". Management also expects its international business to generate "at least $600 million of revenue in 2026", while continuing to operate "at or near breakeven on an adjusted EBITDA basis".

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  Episode #239

  Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) Announced Q2 2026 Earnings on July 22, 2026, Reporting "Consolidated revenues were $119.8 billion"

  Aug 11, 202620 min

  Alphabet Inc. reported its second quarter 2026 results, with executive Anat Ashkenazi stating that "Consolidated revenues were $119.8 billion" for the quarter, up 24 percent year-over-year. Operating income was $40.8 billion and the operating margin was 34 percent for the second quarter. Net income and earnings per share increased significantly, primarily due to 98 billion dollars in other income and expenses from unrealized gains in the company's equity securities portfolio. Within segments, Google Services revenues reached 94.5 billion dollars, driven by Search and subscriptions, while Google Cloud revenues rose 82 percent to 24.8 billion dollars for the quarter. The company reported a negative free cash flow of 5.9 billion dollars, impacted by 44.9 billion dollars in second-quarter capital expenditures.CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted momentum in artificial intelligence, stating that "our AI investments are redefining what's possible across every part of our business". In search, the company merged AI Overviews and AI Mode into a single experience, with AI Mode surpassing 1 billion monthly active users. The Gemini app reached 950 million monthly active users, and more than 1.7 billion unique viewers watched World Cup-related videos on YouTube. Google Cloud backlog expanded by over 50 billion dollars sequentially to 514 billion dollars, driven by strong enterprise demand for Gemini Enterprise, which is now used by nearly 90 percent of the Fortune 100. Additionally, Alphabet delivered TPU systems to customer data centers for the first time in the second quarter, and Waymo introduced its newest sixth-generation driver vehicle, Ojai, to public riders.In partnerships and ecosystem developments, Target and Steve Madden went live with the open-source universal commerce protocol, while Booking Holdings expanded its multiyear cloud commitment. For future expectations, management updated its full year 2026 capital expenditures guidance range to 195 billion to 205 billion dollars, up from the previous estimate of 180 billion to 190 billion dollars, to accelerate capacity delivery. Executive Anat Ashkenazi stated that the company expects capital expenditures to "increase significantly in 2027" compared to 2026. The company also anticipates a slight foreign exchange headwind to consolidated revenue in the third quarter. To bridge near-term capacity constraints, Google Cloud plans to utilize third-party capacity in the third quarter, which is expected to create modest margin pressure, alongside near-term integration headwinds from the Wiz acquisition.

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