Public Policy Holding Reaffirms 2026 Outlook After Two Deals

The Tip Desk · November 12, 2026 · 3 min read

Third-quarter revenue reached $55.2 million as organic growth accelerated to 5.1% and full-year targets were left unchanged.

Public Policy Holding Company, Inc. (PPHC), a global strategic communications provider, reported third-quarter revenue of $55.2 million, up 13.2% from a year earlier, after 7.3% growth in the second quarter. Organic revenue growth accelerated to 5.1% from 3.9% in the prior quarter.

The company completed two acquisitions during the quarter and closed a third after period-end, while reaffirming full-year 2026 guidance of revenue of $213 million to $216 million, adjusted EBITDA of $48.5 million to $50.5 million, and organic growth of approximately 5%. That outlook includes two months of contribution from Reevemark, acquired November 1, and excludes any future deals.

GAAP results flipped to net income of $0.2 million from a $7.4 million loss a year earlier, which the company said resulted from a $9.8 million non-cash bargain purchase gain on the quarter’s acquisitions. GAAP basic and diluted loss per share narrowed to $0.01 from $0.45. Under the two-class method, a dividend declared on non-vested shares exceeded net income, leaving a per-share loss.

Adjusted EBITDA was $12.8 million, up 11.1%, at a 23.2% margin. The company attributed the margin to incremental public-company costs after the January 2026 U.S. IPO and, to a lesser extent, a shift in business mix. Adjusted net income rose 8.7% to $10.7 million. Fully diluted adjusted EPS was $0.33, versus $0.36 a year earlier, reflecting the higher share count after the IPO.

Government Relations Consulting was the quarter’s operating highlight. Segment revenue was $31.9 million, up 16.1%, with organic growth of 7.5% and $2.4 million from acquisitions. Segment adjusted pre-bonus EBITDA was $15.4 million at a 48.3% margin, up 6.3 percentage points. Chief Executive Stewart Hall said the Government Relations businesses delivered double-digit revenue growth, substantial profit growth and robust margins.

Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Consulting revenue was $19.5 million, up 8.1%, with organic revenue down 0.8% and $1.6 million from acquisitions. Segment adjusted pre-bonus EBITDA was $5.0 million at a 25.5% margin. Compliance and Insights Services revenue was $3.8 million, up 16.3%, with segment adjusted pre-bonus EBITDA of $1.8 million at a 46.3% margin.

The company completed Tancredi on July 1, adding financial, corporate and litigation communications as the first member of TrailRunner Group, and The Advocacy Partners on August 1, establishing government-relations capabilities in Florida. Reevemark closed November 1 as the second TrailRunner member. International revenue was $5.1 million in the quarter, up 106.6%, and represented 9.2% of the total.

Net debt was $21.4 million as of September 30, 2026. The company said it had expanded its credit facility after period-end. Headcount was 484. The top 10 clients represented 7.7% of nine-month revenue.

For the nine months ended September 30, revenue was $157.5 million, up 15.2%, with organic growth of 4.7%. Adjusted EBITDA was $36.2 million, up 9.9%, at a 23.0% margin. The company said the nine-month margin reflected a mix shift with highly profitable Government Relations reducing in relative weight, new U.S. public-company costs and certain technology investments. Adjusted free cash flow was $14.6 million, down from $21.1 million, which the company attributed to higher receivables and absorption of working capital from third-quarter acquisitions.

Chief Financial Officer Roel Smits said the company continues to manage the business back toward a 25% adjusted EBITDA margin target as recently acquired businesses scale and it absorbs the first full year of U.S. public-company costs. Full-year guidance remains unchanged.