Financial services provider CBIZ (NYSE:CBZ) fell short of the market’s revenue expectations in Q3 2026 as sales only rose 1.2% year on year to $702.2 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.21 per share was 4% below analysts’ consensus estimates.
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CBIZ (CBZ) Q3 2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $702.2 million vs analyst estimates of $722 million (1.2% year-on-year growth, 2.7% miss)
- Adjusted EPS: $1.21 vs analyst expectations of $1.26 (4% miss)
- Adjusted EBITDA: $131.9 million vs analyst estimates of $138.8 million (18.8% margin, 5% miss)
- Operating Margin: 12.8%, up from 11.3% in the same quarter last year
- Market Capitalization: $2.89 billion
Company Overview
With over 120 offices across 33 states and a team of more than 6,700 professionals, CBIZ (NYSE:CBZ) provides accounting, tax, benefits, insurance brokerage, and advisory services to help small and mid-sized businesses manage their finances and operations.
Revenue Growth
A company’s long-term sales performance is one signal of its overall quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but the best consistently grow over the long haul.
With $2.78 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, CBIZ is a mid-sized business services company, which sometimes brings disadvantages compared to larger competitors benefiting from better economies of scale. On the bright side, it can still flex high growth rates because it’s working from a smaller revenue base.
As you can see below, CBIZ’s sales grew at an incredible 20.9% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. This is a great starting point for our analysis because it shows CBIZ’s demand was higher than many business services companies.
We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within business services, a half-decade historical view may miss recent innovations or disruptive industry trends. CBIZ’s annualized revenue growth of 28.5% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was strong and recently accelerated. 
This quarter, CBIZ’s revenue grew by 1.2% year on year to $702.2 million, falling short of Wall Street’s estimates.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 5.2% over the next 12 months, a deceleration versus the last two years. Despite the slowdown, this projection is above the sector average and implies the market sees some success for its newer products and services.
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Adjusted Operating Margin
CBIZ has managed its cost base well over the last five years. It demonstrated solid profitability for a business services business, producing an average adjusted operating margin of 12.1%.
Looking at the trend in its profitability, CBIZ’s adjusted operating margin decreased by 2.2 percentage points over the last five years. This raises questions about the company’s expense base because its revenue growth should have given it leverage on its fixed costs, resulting in better economies of scale and profitability.
In Q3, CBIZ generated an adjusted operating margin profit margin of 12.8%, in line with the same quarter last year. This indicates the company’s overall cost structure has been relatively stable.
Earnings Per Share
We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.
CBIZ’s EPS grew at an astounding 16.5% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. However, this performance was lower than its 20.9% annualized revenue growth, telling us the company became less profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.
Diving into the nuances of CBIZ’s earnings can give us a better understanding of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, CBIZ’s adjusted operating margin was flat this quarter but declined by 2.2 percentage points over the last five years. Its share count also grew by 12.7%, meaning the company not only became less efficient with its operating expenses but also diluted its shareholders. 
Like with revenue, we analyze EPS over a shorter period to see if we are missing a change in the business.
For CBIZ, its two-year annual EPS growth of 22.3% was higher than its five-year trend. We love it when earnings growth accelerates, especially when it accelerates off an already high base.
In Q3, CBIZ reported adjusted EPS of $1.21, up from $1.01 in the same quarter last year. Despite growing year on year, this print missed analysts’ estimates, but we care more about long-term adjusted EPS growth than short-term movements. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects CBIZ’s full-year EPS to grow 8.8% from $3.92 to $4.27.
Key Takeaways from CBIZ’s Q3 Results
We struggled to find many positives in these results. Its revenue missed and its EPS fell short of Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, this was a weaker quarter. The stock remained flat at $54.85 immediately following the results.
Is CBIZ an attractive investment opportunity right now? When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).