Key Highlights

● Second-quarter revenue was US$4.70 billion, up 62% and above the guided range.

● Full-year 2026 revenue outlook rose to US$20.5 billion from US$19.0 billion.

● Connectivity and Cloud Solutions revenue rose 84% to US$3.81 billion.

● Free cash flow outlook rose to US$600 million from US$500 million.

Latest verified development

Celestica Inc. (NYSE:CLS), the Toronto-headquartered electronics manufacturing and supply-chain services group, reported second-quarter 2026 results on 27 July. Revenue was US$4.70 billion, up 62% from US$2.89 billion a year earlier and above the US$4.15 billion to US$4.45 billion guidance range. Adjusted earnings per share were US$2.54 against US$1.39, also above the guided US$2.14 to US$2.34.

GAAP earnings per share were US$3.17, compared with US$1.82. Adjusted operating margin was 8.2%, up from 7.4%, and GAAP operating margin was 9.8%. Non-GAAP free cash flow was US$147.1 million, up from US$119.9 million. Chief executive Rob Mionis called the performance very strong, citing revenue and earnings above the top of guidance.

Segments and the AI-infrastructure link

Connectivity and Cloud Solutions, the larger segment, produced revenue of US$3.81 billion, up 84%, with a segment margin of 8.7%. Within it, Hardware Platform Solutions revenue was about US$1.9 billion, up 58%. Advanced Technology Solutions, the smaller and more diversified segment, generated US$0.89 billion, up 8%, at a 6.3% margin versus 5.3%.

The growth is concentrated in networking and compute equipment for large data-centre operators. The contrast between the two segments is instructive: the larger one grew more than ten times faster than the smaller, so group results increasingly depend on a single end market. That concentration cuts both ways, magnifying growth when spending is strong and exposing the company if orders slow or customers diversify their supply base.

Guidance and what it implies

For the third quarter, Celestica guided to revenue of US$5.25 billion to US$5.55 billion and adjusted earnings per share of US$2.88 to US$3.08. For full-year 2026 it raised its outlook to revenue of US$20.5 billion from US$19.0 billion, adjusted earnings per share of US$11.30 from US$10.15, adjusted operating margin of 8.4% from 8.1%, and free cash flow of US$600 million from US$500 million.

The company said the outlook implies 65% revenue growth and 87% adjusted earnings growth for the year, and that it expects 2027 revenue growth to exceed the 65% anticipated for 2026, with adjusted earnings growing faster than revenue. Growth rates of this scale depend on customer capital spending and supply availability.

Third-quarter range and single-market exposure

The third-quarter guide of US$5.25 billion to US$5.55 billion starts well above the US$4.70 billion delivered in the second quarter, and the 8.4% adjusted operating margin expected for the year sits just above the 8.2% reported in the quarter.

With the business tied to AI data-centre spending, the lifted free cash flow target of US$600 million still has to be set against US$147.1 million generated in the second quarter.