Cadre Holdings Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results

Published: 2026-05-11 16:16:08 ET CDRE

Q1 Net Sales Grew 19% Year-Over-Year Record Orders Backlog of $355 Million; Organic Backlog Increased $108 Million from Q4 to Q1 Reaffirms 2026 Full-Year Guidance

Published on 05/11/2026 at 04:16 pm EDT

Cadre Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CDRE) (“Cadre” or “Company”), a global leader in the manufacturing and distribution of safety equipment and other related products for the law enforcement, first responder, military and nuclear markets, announced today its consolidated operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2026.

“Following a year of meaningful financial and strategic progress, we began 2026 with significant momentum and delivered another quarter of strong performance,” said Warren Kanders, CEO and Chairman. “Our orders backlog ended the first quarter at $355 million, a record for Cadre, up $166 million from the start of the year, driven largely by the blast attenuation seat contract award and the TYR acquisition, as well as strong demand in duty gear and armor. The substantial backlog growth represents an important forward indicator and gives us confidence in our outlook as we progress through the remainder of 2026. Overall, we continue to see strong and recurring demand for our suite of leading, mission-critical safety products, and today’s environment of heightened geopolitical tension and increased defense spending, reinforces our belief in Cadre’s growth trajectory.”

Mr. Kanders added, “Since January 2024, Cadre has deployed over $400 million in targeted M&A, including our latest acquisition of Alien Gear Holsters, a recognized brand with an established direct-to-consumer presence. We continue to strengthen our diversified platform of durable safety businesses and remain well positioned to capitalize on attractive growth opportunities ahead, supported by a robust acquisition pipeline and significant financial flexibility. Looking forward, we are focused on further embedding the Cadre Operating Model across our full portfolio with its principles of lean operations, continuous improvement, and leadership accountability driving value as we scale.”

First Quarter 2026 Operating Results

For the quarter ended March 31, 2026, Cadre generated net sales of $155.4 million, as compared to $130.1 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, primarily as a result of recent acquisitions, partially offset by timing-related order fluctuations and lower demand for existing nuclear safety products and lower agency demand for hard goods in the Distribution segment.

For the quarter ended March 31, 2026, Cadre generated gross profit of $60.2 million, as compared to $56.1 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2025.

Gross profit margin was 38.7% for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 43.1% for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, mainly driven by an increase in inventory step-up amortization and unfavorable product mix, partially offset by favorable pricing, net of material inflation.

Net income was $2.0 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as compared to net income of $9.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, primarily as a result of increases in compensation expense, interest expense, transaction expense and related party expense, partially offset by increased gross profit.

Cadre generated $21.1 million of Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as compared to $20.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2025. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.6% for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as compared to 15.8% for the prior year period.

Product segment gross profit margin was 39.9% for the first quarter, compared to 44.4% for the prior year period.

Distribution segment gross profit margin was 19.7% for the first quarter, compared to 21.6% for the prior year period.

Liquidity, Cash Flows and Capital Allocation

Acquisition of Alien Gear Holsters

On April 7, 2026, Cadre completed its acquisition of Alien Gear Holsters and certain assets from Tedder Industries, LLC, through a court-supervised bankruptcy auction. Alien Gear Holsters is a leading manufacturer of proprietary holsters and gear for the consumer, law enforcement, military, and security markets.

GDELS Contract Award

On March 10, 2026, Cadre announced that its subsidiary Med-Eng, LLC had been awarded two contracts totaling $86.4 million by General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS) to provide blast attenuation seats. The seats will be deployed in the upcoming production of Mowag EAGLE V 4x4 command and control vehicles, and the Mowag EAGLE V 6x6 medium protected ambulance military vehicles. Production is expected to start this year with smaller deliveries occurring in 2026 with full scale deliveries occurring in 2027.

Acquisition of TYR Tactical

On January 30, 2026, Cadre completed its acquisition of TYR Tactical, LLC, a leading global manufacturer of tactical gear and equipment for military, law enforcement, and government agencies worldwide.

Dividend

On April 21, 2026, the Company announced that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.10 per share, or $0.40 per share on an annualized basis. Cadre's dividend payment will be made on May 15, 2026 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on the record date of May 1, 2026. The declaration of any future dividend is subject to the discretion of the Company's Board of Directors.

2026 Outlook

For the full year 2026, Cadre expects to generate net sales in the range of $736 million to $758 million and adjusted EBITDA in the range of $136 million and $141 million. We expect capital expenditures to be in the range of $10 million to $14 million. Cadre has not provided net income guidance due to the inherent difficulty of forecasting certain types of expenses and gains, which affect net income but not adjusted EBITDA. Therefore, we do not provide a reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA guidance to net income guidance.

Conference Call

Management will host a conference call on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. EST to discuss the latest corporate developments and financial results. The dial-in number for callers in the US is (800)-715-9871 and the dial-in number for international callers is 646-307-1963. The access code for all callers is 9511718. A live webcast will also be available on the Company’s website at https://www.cadre-holdings.com/.

A replay of the call will be available through May 26, 2026. To access the replay, please dial 800-770-2030 in the U.S. or +1-609-800-9909 if outside the U.S., and then enter the access code 9511718.

About Cadre

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Cadre is a global leader in the manufacturing and distribution of safety products. Cadre's equipment provides critical protection to allow users to safely and securely perform their duties and protect those around them in hazardous or life-threatening situations. The Company's core products include body armor, explosive ordnance disposal equipment, duty gear and nuclear safety products. Our highly engineered products are utilized in over 100 countries by federal, state and local law enforcement, fire and rescue professionals, explosive ordnance disposal teams, and emergency medical technicians. Our key brands include Safariland® and Med-Eng®, amongst others.

Use of Non-GAAP Measures

The Company reports its financial results in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). The press release contains the non-GAAP measures: (i) earnings before interest, taxes, other income or expense, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”), (ii) adjusted EBITDA and (iii) adjusted EBITDA margin. The Company believes the presentation of these non-GAAP measures provides useful information for the understanding of its ongoing operations and enables investors to focus on period- over-period operating performance, and thereby enhances the user’s overall understanding of the Company’s current financial performance relative to past performance and provides, along with the nearest GAAP measures, a baseline for modeling future earnings expectations. Non-GAAP measures are reconciled to comparable GAAP financial measures within this press release. We do not provide a reconciliation of the non-GAAP guidance measure adjusted EBITDA for the fiscal year 2026 to net income for the fiscal year 2026, the most comparable GAAP financial measure, due to the inherent difficulty of forecasting certain types of expenses and gains, without unreasonable effort, which affect net income but not adjusted EBITDA. The Company cautions that non-GAAP measures should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, the Company’s reported GAAP results. Additionally, the Company notes that there can be no assurance that the above referenced non-GAAP financial measures are comparable to similarly titled financial measures used by other publicly traded companies.

Forward-Looking Statements

Please note that in this press release we may use words such as “appears,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “future,” and similar expressions which constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are made based on our expectations and beliefs concerning future events impacting the Company and therefore involve a number of risks and uncertainties. We caution that forward-looking statements are not guarantees and that actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Potential risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results of operations or financial condition of the Company to differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements in this press release, include, but are not limited to, those risks and uncertainties more fully described from time to time in the Company's public reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including under the section titled “Risk Factors” in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, and/or Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as in the Company’s Current Reports on Form 8-K. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are based upon information available to the Company as of the date of this press release and speak only as of the date hereof. We assume no obligation to update any forward- looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.

CADRE HOLDINGS, INC.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(Unaudited)

(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)

March 31, 2026

December 31, 2025

Assets

Current assets

Cash and cash equivalents

41,272

122,898

Restricted cash

2,380

2,429

Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $300 and $273, respectively

111,292

110,607

Inventories

130,989

100,263

Prepaid expenses

15,782

14,574

Other current assets

17,049

15,095

Total current assets

318,764

365,866

Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization of $64,925 and $63,125, respectively

124,115

78,822

Operating lease assets

22,885

19,778

Deferred tax assets, net

4,731

4,816

Intangible assets, net

173,321

114,984

Goodwill

231,225

181,406

Other assets

4,695

4,359

Total assets

879,736

770,031

Liabilities, Mezzanine Equity and Shareholders' Equity

Current liabilities

Accounts payable

39,901

22,325

Accrued liabilities

82,387

61,066

Income tax payable

2,618

4,838

Current portion of long-term debt

16,263

16,266

Total current liabilities

141,169

104,495

Long-term debt

349,567

290,987

Long-term operating lease liabilities

14,969

15,039

Deferred tax liabilities

30,097

30,058

Other liabilities

7,818

11,648

Total liabilities

543,620

452,227

Mezzanine equity

Preferred stock ($0.0001 par value, 10,000,000 shares authorized, no shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2026 and December 31, 2025)

—

Shareholders' equity

Common stock ($0.0001 par value, 190,000,000 shares authorized, 42,797,451 and 42,160,656 shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2026 and December 31, 2025, respectively)

Additional paid-in capital

305,897

282,570

Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income

(2,248

)

460

Accumulated earnings

32,463

34,770

Total shareholders’ equity

336,116

317,804

Total liabilities, mezzanine equity and shareholders' equity

879,736

770,031

CADRE HOLDINGS, INC.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(Unaudited)

(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)

Three Months Ended March 31,

2026

2025

Net sales

155,429

130,106

Cost of goods sold

95,263

73,975

Gross profit

60,166

56,131

Operating expenses

Selling, general and administrative

48,833

41,753

Restructuring and transaction costs

1,842

698

Related party expense

2,000

128

Total operating expenses

52,675

42,579

Operating income

7,491

13,552

Other expense

Interest expense, net

(4,271

)

(2,231

)

Other (expense) income, net

(389

)

1,287

Total other expense, net

(4,660

)

(944

)

Income before provision for income taxes

2,831

12,608

Provision for income taxes

(856

)

(3,360

)

Net income

1,975

9,248

Net income per share:

Basic

0.05

0.23

Diluted

0.05

0.23

Weighted average shares outstanding:

Basic

42,558,154

40,618,554

Diluted

43,363,704

40,980,861

CADRE HOLDINGS, INC.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(Unaudited)

(In thousands)

Three Months Ended March 31,

2026

2025

Cash Flows From Operating Activities:

Net income

1,975

9,248

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:

Depreciation and amortization

5,728

3,856

Amortization of original issue discount and debt issue costs

241

500

Amortization of inventory step-up

2,559

—

Deferred income taxes

533

Stock-based compensation

1,926

1,968

Remeasurement of contingent consideration

(564

)

331

Recoveries from losses on accounts receivable

(329

)

(17

)

Unrealized foreign exchange transaction loss (gain)

643

(731

)

Other loss

217

Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of impact of acquisitions:

Accounts receivable

10,255

10,633

Inventories

(10,492

)

(9,143

)

Prepaid expenses and other assets

(3,252

)

1,340

Accounts payable and other liabilities

13,536

(1,168

)

Net cash provided by operating activities

22,521

17,391

Cash Flows From Investing Activities:

Purchase of property and equipment

(2,680

)

(1,309

)

Business acquisitions, net of cash acquired

(153,553

)

—

Net cash used in investing activities

(156,233

)

(1,309

)

Cash Flows From Financing Activities:

Proceeds from revolving credit facilities

62,500

—

Principal payments on term loans

(4,031

)

(2,813

)

Taxes paid in connection with employee stock transactions

(1,241

)

(1,140

)

Dividends distributed

(4,282

)

(3,859

)

Other

(54

)

—

Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities

52,892

(7,812

)

Effect of foreign exchange rates on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

(855

)

228

Change in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

(81,675

)

8,498

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period

125,327

124,933

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period

43,652

133,431

Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flows Information:

Cash paid for income taxes, net

3,800

2,017

Cash paid for interest

4,907

3,527

Supplemental Disclosure of Non-Cash Investing and Financing Activities:

Accruals and accounts payable for capital expenditures

418

104

Non-cash consideration

31,647

—

CADRE HOLDINGS, INC.

SEGMENT INFORMATION

(Unaudited)

(In thousands)

Three Months Ended March 31, 2026

Reconciling

Product

Distribution

Items(1)

Total

Net sales

140,639

20,295

(5,505)

155,429

Cost of goods sold

84,463

16,307

(5,507)

95,263

Gross profit

56,176

3,988

60,166

Three Months Ended March 31, 2025

Reconciling

Product

Distribution

Items(1)

Total

Net sales

112,735

27,862

(10,491

)

130,106

Cost of goods sold

62,625

21,841

(10,491

)

73,975

Gross profit

50,110

6,021

—

56,131

(1)

CADRE HOLDINGS, INC.

RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

(Unaudited)

(In thousands)

Year ended

Three Months Ended

Last Twelve

December 31,

March 31,

Months

2025

2026

2025

March 31, 2026

Net income

44,139

1,975

9,248

36,866

Add back:

Depreciation and amortization

18,633

5,728

3,856

20,505

Interest expense, net

12,480

4,271

2,231

14,520

Provision for income taxes

18,187

856

3,360

15,683

EBITDA

93,439

12,830

18,695

87,574

Add back:

Restructuring and transaction costs(1)

8,696

3,842

698

11,840

Other expense (income), net(2)

(7,455

)

389

(1,287

)

(5,779

)

Stock-based compensation expense(3)

12,239

1,926

1,968

12,197

Stock-based compensation payroll tax expense(4)

1,566

129

1,603

Amortization of inventory step-up(5)

1,296

2,559

—

3,855

Contingent consideration expense(6)

1,927

(564

)

331

1,032

Adjusted EBITDA

111,708

21,111

20,497

112,322

Adjusted EBITDA margin(7)

18.5

13.6

15.8

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

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