Investing.com -- Core & Main, Inc. (NYSE: CNM) reported first-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, with shares edging up around 0.7% premarket following the announcement.

Adjusted earnings per share of $0.72 beat the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.18. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.91 billion, slightly above the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Revenue was essentially flat compared to $1.91 billion in the same quarter last year.

The specialty distributor reaffirmed its full-year fiscal 2026 outlook, projecting net sales of $7.80 billion to $7.90 billion, reflecting growth of 2% to 3%. The company expects adjusted EBITDA of $950 million to $980 million, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 12.2% to 12.4%.

Gross profit increased 2.0% to $520 million, with gross profit margin expanding 50 basis points to 27.2%. Net income rose 7.6% to $113 million, while adjusted EBITDA increased 0.9% to $226 million. The company deployed $88 million to repurchase 1.8 million shares during the quarter, with an additional $37 million used to repurchase 0.8 million shares after quarter end.

"In the first quarter, we delivered solid results despite a dynamic macroeconomic environment and strong prior-year comparison," said Mark Witkowski, CEO of Core & Main. "Municipal demand remained healthy, supported by ongoing repair-and-replace activity and infrastructure investment."

The company reported strong performance in treatment plant solutions with double-digit growth and high-single-digit growth in smart utility categories. Core & Main opened five new greenfield locations during the quarter and generated $82 million in operating cash flow, up from $77 million in the prior year period.

Net debt decreased to $2.01 billion as of May 3, 2026, compared with $2.28 billion in the prior year period.