RBC Bearings Sales Growth Cools After a Faster First Quarter

The Tip Desk · October 30, 2026 · 3 min read

Second-quarter sales were $524.6 million, up 15.2%, as Industrial growth picked up and Aerospace & Defense cooled.

RBC Bearings Incorporated (RBC), an international maker of precision bearings for industrial and aerospace and defense customers, reported second-quarter fiscal 2027 net sales of $524.6 million, up 15.2% from a year earlier.

That year-over-year pace slowed from 19.2% in the first quarter. The mix inside the company shifted the other way: Aerospace & Defense sales of $230.2 million rose 15.8%, down from a 36.9% increase in the prior quarter, while Industrial sales of $294.4 million rose 14.8%, faster than the 8.4% Industrial increase in the first quarter.

Industrial included $2.0 million of sales from the PSC acquisition that closed on August 10, 2026. Excluding those sales, the company said organic net sales rose $67.3 million, or 14.8%, and Industrial grew 14.0% organically.

Gross margin was 45.6%, compared with 44.1% a year earlier. Adjusted gross margin was 45.6% versus 44.9% last year. Gross margin was favorably impacted by $1.7 million of tariff refunds. The year-over-year expansion was narrower than the 290-basis-point increase to 47.7% in the first quarter.

GAAP operating income rose 34.6% to $131.6 million, or 25.1% of sales. Adjusted operating income was $132.7 million, or 25.3% of sales. Selling, general and administrative expense was $83.4 million, or 15.9% of sales, compared with 17.0% a year earlier.

Net income was $93.8 million, or $2.96 a share, up from $60.0 million, or $1.90 a share, a year earlier. Adjusted net income was $118.7 million, or $3.74 a share. The effective income tax rate was 23.4%, compared with 28.0% a year earlier.

Interest expense, net, fell to $9.3 million from $13.4 million a year earlier. The company said the decrease was primarily due to continued debt reduction; the Term Loan was fully repaid during the second quarter. Cash was $89.3 million as of September 26, 2026.

Backlog was $2.4 billion as of September 26, 2026, compared with $2.3 billion as of March 28, 2026 and $1.6 billion as of September 27, 2025.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Michael J. Hartnett said RBC “seems to be operating in an environment that is tailor-made for our products,” that revenues in both A&D and industrial products grew at mid-teen levels while year-on-year gross margins expanded, that backlog increased and considerable debt was retired, and that the company is “thrilled to report the next six months are positioned to show an even better second half.”

The company expects third-quarter fiscal 2027 net sales of approximately $520.0 million to $525.0 million, compared with $461.6 million in the prior year, for growth of 12.7% to 13.7%. Gross margin is expected at 45.5% to 45.75% and SG&A at 16.25% to 16.5% of net sales.