Akamai Technologies, Inc. AKAM is set to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 7, after the closing bell. In the last reported quarter, the company delivered an earnings surprise of 5.14%. It pulled off a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 9.44% on average, beating estimates on all previous occasions.
The company is expected to witness year-over-year revenue growth, driven by strong demand for security solutions, cloud and edge computing. However, higher costs, ongoing investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and infrastructure, and competition in the cloud market might have pressured the bottom line.
Factors at Play
During the first quarter of 2026, Akamai secured the State of Montana Data Communications Contract, strengthening its presence in the public sector. The contract is expected to have generated healthy revenues as services are deployed across state agencies.
Akamai’s security business remained a key growth driver in the quarter under review, supported by rising demand for zero trust, API security and network segmentation solutions. As enterprises expand their cybersecurity coverage, higher renewals and upsell opportunities are expected to have driven incremental revenues for the company.
During the quarter, Akamai witnessed initial gains from its previously announced AI and cloud deals, especially in edge computing and enterprise workloads. Early deployments and pilot use of AI services are expected to have generated revenues in the to-be-reported quarter.
Revenues from the Security Technology Group segment are expected to be $578.2 million, indicating an increase from the prior-year quarter’s tally of $530.7 million. Net sales from the Delivery segment are pegged at $301.8 million, down from $319 million in the year-ago quarter. The consensus estimate for revenues from the Cloud Computing segment is pegged at $193.2 million, implying growth from $165.5 million in the year-ago quarter.
For the March quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $1.07 billion, indicating year-over-year growth from $1.02 billion. The consensus estimate for adjusted earnings per share stands at $1.61, indicating a decline from $1.70 reported a year ago.
Earnings Whispers
Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for Akamai for the first quarter. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat.
Earnings ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is +1.11%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Zacks Rank: Akamai carries a Zacks Rank #3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Akamai Technologies, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise
Akamai Technologies, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Akamai Technologies, Inc. Quote
Stocks to Consider
Here are some stocks you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this season:
Lumen Technologies, Inc. LUMN is set to release its first-quarter 2026 numbers on May 5. It has an Earnings ESP of +27.27% and sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present.
The Earnings ESP for Flex Ltd. FLEX is +0.93%, and it carries a Zacks Rank of 2 at present. The company is scheduled to report fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 numbers on May 6.
The Earnings ESP for CDW Corporation CDW is +1.90%, and it carries a Zacks Rank of 2 at present. The company is scheduled to report first-quarter 2026 numbers on May 6.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
