TLDR
- RBC Bearings (RBC) closed at $368.19 on May 16, 2025.
- Q4 FY25 EPS of $2.83 beat estimates by 5.6%.
- Net sales rose 5.8% year-over-year to $437.7 million.
- Aerospace/Defense revenue jumped 10.6%.
- FY26 Q1 outlook projects up to 6.8% sales growth.
RBC Bearings Incorporated (NYSE: RBC) closed at $368.17 on Friday as it released its Q4 and full-year fiscal 2025 results on May 16, 2025.
RBC Bearings Incorporated (RBC)
The precision bearings and components manufacturer exceeded earnings expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $2.83, above the Zacks consensus of $2.68. This marked a 5.6% earnings surprise and improvement from $2.47 in the year-ago period.
Net sales for the quarter totaled $437.7 million, up 5.8% from Q4 FY24. However, this slightly missed consensus estimates by 0.71%. The Aerospace/Defense segment led the way with 10.6% growth, while the Industrial division rose 3.3%.
RBC Bearings Incorporated, $RBC, Q4-25. Results:
🟢 +1% Pre-Market📊 Adj. EPS: $2.83 🟢
💰 Revenue: $437.7M 🔴
📈 Net Income: $72.7M
🔎 Aerospace/Defense growth powered Q4 sales to $437.7M with strong margins and record cash flow used to reduce debt. pic.twitter.com/JHKDAytFpq— EarningsTime (@Earnings_Time) May 16, 2025
Margin Gains and Profit Growth
Gross margin expanded to 44.2%, up from 43.1% last year. Net income attributable to common stockholders climbed to $72.7 million, compared to $55.9 million in Q4 FY24. Adjusted net income reached $89.3 million, compared to $72.3 million a year ago.
Diluted EPS stood at $2.30, with the adjusted figure at $2.83. Operating income improved to $100.7 million, up from $94.2 million. SG&A expenses increased to $72.1 million, or 16.5% of sales, up from 15.6%. Interest expense declined sharply to $12.8 million due to debt reduction and interest hedging strategies.
Strong Full-Year Performance
For fiscal year 2025, RBC Bearings reported net sales of $1.64 billion, a 4.9% increase from FY24. Aerospace/Defense grew 14.1%, while Industrial inched up 0.2%. Gross margin rose to 44.4% versus 43.0% last year. Net income attributable to common shareholders rose to 14.3% of net sales, up from 12.0%.
Adjusted EBITDA margin improved to 31.8%, and RBC has now exceeded EPS estimates in three of the last four quarters.
Outlook and Backlog
The company expects Q1 FY26 revenue between $424.0 million and $434.0 million, representing a year-over-year growth rate of 4.4% to 6.8%. Gross margin is projected between 44.25% and 44.75%, with SG&A expected to range from 16.75% to 17.25% of sales.
RBC ended the quarter with a backlog of $940.7 million, up from $896.5 million in December 2024 and $821.5 million a year ago, indicating robust demand.
Stock Performance and Analyst View
RBC stock has risen 22.8% year-to-date, outperforming the S&P 500’s 0.6% gain. Despite the earnings beat, revenue misses in recent quarters have led analysts to assign a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), suggesting the stock may perform in line with the market.
With a solid margin profile and growth in high-value Aerospace/Defense segments, investor focus will now shift to Q1 FY26 execution and updates on cost controls.
