Custom Truck One Source, Inc. (CTOS)

Price$9.09Cached quoteAs of 2026-09-04 16:23 UTC

AI: Fair-priced

Price checkMarket valuation looks balanced against stronger guidance, but leverage and thin free cash flow limit cheapness.

Custom Truck One Source (NYSE: CTOS) is valued around $2.15 billion in equity and about $4.69 billion including debt-like obligations. Against management’s 2026 Adjusted EBITDA guidance of $437.5 million to $455 million, that implies roughly 10–11 times enterprise value to adjusted EBITDA. That is not a bargain for a leveraged cyclical company, but it is defensible if rental growth and deleveraging continue. Traditional earnings multiples look high because net income remains small relative to revenue and depreciation is heavy.

Big pictureUtility-grid spending supports growth, while equipment demand and financing costs keep the business meaningfully cyclical.

CTOS rents and sells specialized equipment used in electric utility, telecom, rail, forestry and other infrastructure work. The bull case assumes strong transmission-and-distribution demand persists, full-year revenue lands near the upper guidance range, and Adjusted EBITDA grows fast enough to pull leverage toward the company’s below-three-times 2027 target. The bear case assumes project timing softens, equipment deliveries and rental utilization cool, and working capital stays tied up in inventory, leaving debt reduction slower and returns vulnerable to higher interest rates.

Business strengthRental utilization and earnings improved sharply, but cash durability still depends on inventory discipline and lower leverage.

Second-quarter revenue rose 10.2% year over year and Adjusted EBITDA rose 25%, while rental-fleet utilization reached 81.6%. Net leverage fell to 3.85 times, meaning net debt was 3.85 times the last twelve months of adjusted operating earnings. Liquidity included $10.3 million of cash and $229.4 million of available ABL borrowing. However, first-half operating cash flow fell to $68.2 million as inventory absorbed cash, so management’s goal of more than $50 million of 2026 levered free cash flow remains important proof.

What could change the storyDeleveraging, working-capital release and disciplined share issuance could lift value; weaker demand would reverse that progress.

The key upside trigger is cash conversion: lower inventory, moderated fleet spending and sustained rental margins could fund debt reduction without sacrificing growth. Management raised expected 2026 net fleet investment to $170–$200 million, so execution matters. Buybacks are no longer a major support, with only $1.9 million remaining under the authorization and no common-stock repurchases in the first half; stock-based awards can add shares over time. A downside trigger would be renewed borrowing, weaker utilization or a financing squeeze that delays the planned path below three-times leverage.

AI: News

Q2 guidance raisedRecord second-quarter results led management to raise full-year revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance.

On August 3, CTOS reported second-quarter revenue of $563.4 million, up 10.2% year over year, and Adjusted EBITDA of $116.8 million, up 25%. Net income improved to $10.4 million from a prior-year loss. Management raised 2026 revenue guidance to $2.1–$2.2 billion and Adjusted EBITDA guidance to $437.5–$455 million, citing continued strength in transmission and distribution markets. It also expects levered free cash flow above $50 million and year-end net leverage meaningfully below four times.

Sourcewell contract awardedA new cooperative purchasing contract can simplify public-agency buying and broaden access to CTOS equipment.

On May 27, CTOS announced it had won a Sourcewell cooperative purchasing contract after a competitive solicitation. Eligible public agencies, including municipal transit authorities and state and local governments, can purchase directly through the contract rather than running separate solicitations. The agreement does not guarantee a fixed revenue amount, but it can reduce procurement friction and expand CTOS’s reach across public-sector customers, adding another sales channel alongside its core utility and infrastructure customer base.

Q1 momentum strengthenedFirst-quarter growth and higher rental utilization prompted an early increase in 2026 earnings guidance.

On April 27, CTOS reported record first-quarter revenue of $461.6 million, up 9.3% year over year, with Adjusted EBITDA rising 33.4% to $98.0 million. Rental utilization improved to 81.4%, and management raised its then-current 2026 Adjusted EBITDA guidance to $415–$440 million. The quarter also showed leverage improving to 4.02 times and highlighted a plan to reduce rental-fleet investment versus 2025, improve inventory turns, generate free cash flow and keep deleveraging.

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Financial statements

	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
Revenue	$1.45B	$1.36B	$1.33B	$1.08B	$788.5M	$115.2M	$74.9M	$69.3M	$50.0M
Gross profit	$411.9M	$390.3M	$454.3M	$383.7M	$210.0M	$76.4M	$86.5M	$81.6M	$57.7M
Gross margin	28.48%	28.70%	34.12%	35.37%	26.63%	66.35%	115.59%	117.83%	115.53%
Operating expenses	$286.9M	$263.9M	$283.3M	$280.4M	$252.0M	$59.2M	$50.5M	$38.5M	$34.3M
Operating income	$124.9M	$126.4M	$170.9M	$103.3M	−$42.0M	$17.2M	$36.0M	$43.2M	$23.5M
Operating margin	8.64%	9.29%	12.84%	9.52%	−5.32%	14.97%	48.10%	62.32%	46.99%
EBITDA	$388.8M	$362.2M	$389.9M	$326.8M	$167.1M	$102.1M	$112.8M	$46.2M	$26.3M
EBITDA margin	26.88%	26.63%	29.29%	30.12%	21.19%	88.65%	150.64%	66.71%	52.71%
Net income	−$31.1M	−$28.7M	$50.7M	$38.9M	−$181.5M	−$21.3M	−$27.1M	−$15.5M	−$27.1M
Net profit margin	−2.15%	−2.11%	3.81%	3.59%	−23.02%	−18.47%	−36.13%	−22.42%	−54.21%
Basic EPSper basic share	-$0.14	-$0.12	$0.21	$0.16	-$0.75	-$0.43	-$0.82	-$0.72	-$1.25
Diluted EPSper diluted share	-$0.14	-$0.12	$0.21	$0.16	-$0.75	-$0.43	-$0.82	-$0.72	-$1.25

Review official source filings ↗

Owners

Reported shareholders

Reference date Jun 30, 2026

≈68.90%of listed shares

Gores Tom / PLATINUM EQUITY, LLC156.74M shares · Jan 30, 2025

View holders

Top 20 reported holders of CTOS
Holder	% owned
Gores Tom / PLATINUM EQUITY, LLC	≈68.90%156.74M shares
Platinum Equity InvestCo, L.P. / PE One Source Holdings, LLC / Platinum Equity Investment Holdings, LLC / Platinum Equity Partners V, LLC / Platinum InvestCo (Cayman), LLC / Platinum Equity Investment Holdings IC (Cayman), LLC / Platinum Equity Investment Holdings V Manager, LLC / Platinum Equity Investment Holdings V, LLC / Platinum Equity Partners V, L.P.	≈68.90%156.74M shares
Platinum Equity Advisors, LLC/DE	68.90%156.74M shares
ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III-D, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III-C, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III-B, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS GP III CO-INVESTMENT (NESCO), LLC / ECP ControlCo, LLC / Energy Capital Partners GP III, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III-A, LP / ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III, LLC / Energy Capital Partners III (NESCO Co-Invest), LP	≈10.28%23.38M shares
NESCO Holdings GP, LLC / ECP Cardinal Holdings, LP / NESCO Holdings, LP	≈10.28%23.38M shares
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS LP	2.71%6.17M shares
MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.	2.71%6.16M shares
Canvas Wealth Advisors, LLC	2.63%5.98M shares
EIN MARK	≈2.27%5.17M shares
BlackRock, Inc.	2.01%4.57M shares
Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC	1.18%2.69M shares
VANGUARD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC	1.13%2.58M shares
Ross Fredrick M. Jr.	≈1.12%2.54M shares
ARROWSTREET CAPITAL, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP	0.97%2.2M shares
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC	0.83%1.88M shares
GEODE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC	0.76%1.73M shares
First Eagle Investment Management, LLC	0.76%1.72M shares
Alyeska Investment Group, L.P.	0.72%1.64M shares
Boston Partners	0.71%1.63M shares
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO	0.70%1.59M shares

Percentages use 227.51M shares of this listed class outstanding on Jun 30, 2026. ≈ compares the latest reported holding with a share total from a different date; it is not a confirmed current stake.

Reported positions exceed 100% in total, so the circle shows the selected holder only.

Source: SEC Form 4 ↗Updated Sep 29, 2026 · Quarterly data

Insider buys & sells

Jul 1, 2024–Jun 30, 2026

Buys4$65.59M disclosed value

Sells (SEC code S)3$16.18M disclosed value

Transaction	Insider	Type	Shares	Price	Value	Owned after
Jan 30, 2025Form 4	Platinum Equity InvestCo, L.P. +8TenPercentOwner	BuyCommon Stock · indirect	8.14M	$4.00	$32.57M	156.74M
Jan 30, 2025Form 4	Gores Tom +1TenPercentOwner	BuyCommon Stock · indirect	8.14M	$4.00	$32.57M	156.74M
Sep 5, 2024Form 4	ENERGY CAPITAL PARTNERS III-D, LP +9TenPercentOwner	SellCommon Stock · indirect	2.35M	$3.42	$8.05M	23.38M
Sep 5, 2024Form 4	NESCO Holdings GP, LLC +2TenPercentOwner	SellCommon Stock · indirect	2.35M	$3.42	$8.05M	23.38M
Aug 27, 2024Form 4	Energy Capital Partners Management, LPDirector	SellCommon Stock · indirect	18.6K	$4.17	$77.7K	0

Review ownership filings at SEC.gov ↗

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Custom Truck One Source, Inc. (CTOS)

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