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what it is
Transcat calibrates mission-critical equipment and sells testing instruments to regulated industries that cannot afford bad readings.
how it gets paid
Last year Transcat made $278M in revenue. Calibration and repair services was the main engine at $122M, or 44% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 7.3% last year. Revenue was up 189% vs. prior year, and EPS rose 408%.
what just happened
Latest reported quarter revenue hit $243M, while EPS came in at $0.37 and gross margin was 32.1%.
At a glance
B balance sheet — gets the job done, barely
70/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
50.2x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
4.7% return on capital — nothing to write home about
$1.57 fy2024 eps est
xvary composite: 44/100 — below average
What they do
Transcat calibrates mission-critical equipment and sells testing instruments to regulated industries that cannot afford bad readings.
Transcat wins because its customers operate in regulated markets where a bad measurement can wreck a batch, a filing, or an audit. That makes calibration a habit, not a one-time purchase. The company serves life science and other regulated customers with 1,245 employees and ISO/IEC 17025 accredited services, which is accreditation → proof the lab meets strict standards → so your customer has a reason to stay.
How they make money
$278M
annual revenue · their business grew +7.3% last year
Calibration and repair services
$122M
Inspection, qualification, and maintenance
$56M
Test and measurement instrument sales
$82M
Control instrument distribution
$18M
The products that matter
accredited instrument service
Calibration & Repair Services
$178M · 64% of revenue
this is the core business: $178M of revenue, up 12% last year, tied to regulated workflows that customers cannot skip for long.
recurring core
test and measurement distribution
Equipment Sales
$100M · 36% of revenue
this $100M segment was flat last year, but Q3 distribution gross margin reached 32.4%. The catch: mix helped, so you need to see if that margin holds.
margin swing factor
small-cap operating model
Earnings Conversion
Q3 revenue $83.9M · EPS -$0.12
the number that mattered last quarter was not sales growth. It was that $83.9M of revenue still ended in a loss. If you own the stock, that conversion rate is the thing to watch.
proof needed
Key numbers
50.2x
trailing p/e
P/E → how many years of earnings you are paying for → so what: you are paying a luxury multiple for a company with modest returns.
4.7%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on money invested in the business → so what: this is low for a stock priced like a star.
$278M
annual revenue
This is a sub-$300M revenue company carrying a roughly $690M market value, which tells you the market already expects a lot.
$144M
long-term debt
Debt → money the company owes → so what: leverage is not fatal here, but it matters when you already pay 50.2x earnings.
Financial health
B
strength
- balance sheet grade B — adequate — nothing special
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 25 / 100
- long-term debt $144M (17% of capital)
B — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for TRNS right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
Latest reported quarter revenue hit $243M, while EPS came in at $0.37 and gross margin was 32.1%.
Revenue was up 189% vs. prior year, and EPS rose 408%. The quiet part is that a lot of the stock story still depends on keeping margins firm enough to justify the multiple.
$243M
revenue
$0.37
eps
32.1%
gross margin
the number that mattered
32.1% gross margin matters because margin expansion is one of the few clean ways to defend a stock trading at 50.2x earnings.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is profit conversion breaking under a new ceo after a quarter where $83.9M of sales still ended in a loss.
high
revenue growth without earnings growth
Q3 revenue grew 26% and adjusted EBITDA rose to $10.1M, yet EPS landed at a $0.12 loss. If that pattern repeats, the premium multiple loses its cover.
50.2x trailing earnings does not leave much room for another quarter where growth fails to reach the bottom line.
med
distribution is the swing factor
The $100M distribution segment was flat last year. Q3 margin hit 32.4%, up 330 basis points, but that kind of jump can fade if customer mix shifts back.
36% of revenue comes from a segment that has not been driving growth and can move margins more than the headline revenue line suggests.
med
balance sheet flexibility is fine, not generous
Transcat ended the period with $3.5M of cash and $144M of long-term debt. That is workable, but it is not the kind of balance sheet that lets you shrug off a long stretch of weak execution.
If cash conversion slips, the debate shifts from growth quality to balance-sheet tolerance.
med
new-ceo reset risk
Jaime Irick took over on march 29, 2026, while the company also pointed to an acquisition pipeline. New leadership plus deal appetite can sharpen execution, or create more moving parts at the wrong time.
You want strategy changes to improve margins, not add another layer of integration work before earnings settle down.
between the $178M service base, the $100M distribution business, and only $3.5M of cash against $144M of long-term debt, this setup has less room for error than the valuation implies.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
management
first full read on the new ceo
Jaime Irick took over on march 29, 2026. You want the next call to tell you what gets fixed first: margins, mix, or acquisition pace.
metric
service stays above company growth
Service grew 12% last year and makes up 64% of revenue. If that line slows, the cleaner part of the story starts to look less clean.
margin
32.4% distribution margin
That Q3 margin jump was the best surprise on the page. Watch if it holds, because flat revenue with better mix can still move profit.
risk
another revenue beat with weak EPS
This is the red flag. If sales keep rising but EPS stays negative or thin, the stock stops being a niche compounder story and starts looking expensive.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
70 / 100
in human-speak, analysts think the numbers are decent but not stable enough to rule out surprises.
price stability
25 / 100
the stock itself is less calm than the business pitch. If you own it, expect moves.
risk rank
3
middle of the pack on risk. Not a bunker stock. Not a blowup profile either.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for TRNS is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$61
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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