Corpay (NYSE:CPAY) reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $1.34 billion, up 21% from a year earlier and $45 million above its expectations, as favorable macroeconomic conditions and underlying operating performance supported growth.
Chairman and CEO Ronald Clarke said macro conditions contributed roughly $30 million of the revenue outperformance, while underlying business performance accounted for about $15 million. Cash earnings per share reached $7.00, up 36% year over year and an all-time company record, according to Clarke.
Corporate Payments Leads Segment Growth
Corporate payments benefited from strong performance in cross-border payments and payables. CFO Peter Walker said the segment’s 16% organic growth included a 180-basis-point drag from float-revenue compression caused by lower interest rates compared with the prior year. Organic spend in the segment rose 43% to $95 billion.
Walker said more than 80% of Alpha’s corporate volume has migrated to Corpay’s global technology platform following the acquisition. He also highlighted the performance of Avid, Corpay’s minority equity investment, where sales grew more than 30%, EBITDA more than doubled from the prior year and revenue and volume remained strong.
Vehicle payments grew 8% organically, with Brazil and Europe performing strongly. Clarke said U.S. vehicle growth reflected Corpay’s strategy of allocating more sales investment toward higher-return opportunities in corporate payments. Still, he said the company has improved the vehicle segment’s customer mix and retention, positioning its growth rate as increasingly dependent on sales investment and productivity.
Lodging showed sequential improvement, with organic revenue growth improving by two percentage points versus the first quarter. The company said it had lapped certain episodic events from the prior year that had created difficult comparisons and expects the segment to return to organic growth in the second half.
Guidance Raised Despite Planned epyx Sale
Corpay raised its full-year revenue outlook to $5.31 billion at the midpoint, representing 17% growth from 2025. The revised outlook incorporates the $45 million second-quarter revenue beat and an additional $15 million increase tied to improved macro conditions and business momentum. Those benefits are partially offset by an expected $40 million reduction in 2026 revenue from the planned divestiture of epyx, a non-core vehicle payments business.
The company has signed a definitive agreement to sell epyx and expects the transaction to close in the fall, likely between September and October. For planning purposes, Corpay assumes a Sept. 1 closing. The sale is expected to reduce revenue by approximately $10 million per month, but management expects no impact to adjusted EPS because it plans to use proceeds for share repurchases.
Corpay raised full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $27.35 at the midpoint, up 28% year over year. The outlook includes the company’s $0.45 second-quarter EPS outperformance and an additional $0.20 benefit from higher revenue and productivity improvements during the remainder of the year.
- Third-quarter revenue guidance: $1.355 billion at the midpoint, up 16% year over year.
- Third-quarter organic revenue growth outlook: 9% to 11%.
- Third-quarter adjusted EPS guidance: $7.15 at the midpoint, up 26% year over year.
- Full-year cash EBITDA outlook: about $3 billion.
- Full-year free cash flow outlook: about $1.8 billion.
Walker said Corpay expects to maintain roughly 10% organic revenue growth for the full year, with corporate payments continuing at a mid-teens-plus rate in the second half and lodging expected to accelerate to mid-single-digit growth.
Margins, Capital Returns and Balance Sheet
Adjusted EBITDA margin was 57.3%, about 100 basis points above the prior-year period, driven by operating leverage and macro-related revenue flow-through. Operating costs rose 9%, excluding foreign exchange, acquisition-related items, stock compensation, amortization and a settlement charge.
The company recorded a $100 million settlement charge related to an FTC matter, which remains subject to final commission approval. Walker said higher operating expenses were principally related to sales investments and modestly higher credit losses. Corpay does not plan to weaken underwriting standards to pursue growth in vehicle payments, he added.
At quarter-end, Corpay’s leverage ratio was 2.55 times, with approximately $1.6 billion available under its revolving credit facility. The company repurchased $321 million of stock during the quarter, retiring roughly 1 million shares, and had about $1.4 billion remaining under its authorization.
Corpay also refinanced its revolving credit facility and Term Loan A, expanding its revolver to $3.7 billion and paying down $1 billion of its Term Loan B. Walker said the company has refinanced its entire debt stack over the past nine months, extending maturities and lowering borrowing costs.
Portfolio Simplification and Growth Priorities
Clarke said Corpay intends to build a simpler portfolio with fewer, larger businesses. Beyond epyx, management has identified additional smaller or less-related businesses that could be divested over the next six to 12 months. He said a larger portfolio action could also be considered if operating performance improves and provides the company with more options.
The company plans to focus investment on spend management, fleet-related capabilities and cross-border payments. In cross-border, Corpay is adding real-time private blockchain rails and developing a global banking and deposit offering. Clarke said the enhanced global banking product, which connects multiple local foreign accounts to a client’s primary account, is expected to be available in the fourth quarter and could provide a larger sales opportunity in 2027.
Corpay also reported progress in its partnership with Mastercard, with 10 financial institutions signed and roughly 100 additional institutions in the pipeline. Clarke said sales cycles with financial institutions are longer than with corporate customers, but said the partnership has performed better than expected.
Looking longer term, management reaffirmed targets of more than 10% organic revenue growth, low-teens pretax profit growth and more than 20% cash EPS growth.
About Corpay (NYSE:CPAY)
Corpay is a global corporate payments company that provides businesses with a range of payment and expense management solutions. Its services are designed to help organizations manage payables, card programs, travel and fleet-related expenses, and cross-border transactions more efficiently.
The company serves customers across a variety of industries and geographies, offering software and payment tools that streamline accounts payable, vendor payments, and workforce payments. Corpay also provides specialized solutions for fleet management and international payments, helping businesses control costs and simplify financial operations.
Corpay operates as part of the broader financial technology and payment processing sector.
