Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Garmin Ltd. (NYSE:GRMN)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $216.98, but opened at $251.19. Garmin shares last traded at $237.2620, with a volume of 1,207,312 shares changing hands.

The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. Garmin had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 19.42%. Garmin’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.41 earnings per share. Garmin has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.350-9.350 EPS.

Garmin Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 12th will be paid a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 12th. Garmin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.33%.

Key Headlines Impacting Garmin

Here are the key news stories impacting Garmin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record quarter and beat: Garmin reported stronger-than-expected Q4 revenue and EPS, led by a 42% jump in fitness wearable sales and gains across aviation and marine — the core catalyst for the rally. PR Newswire: Garmin Q4 & FY2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish FY2026 guidance: Garmin guided FY2026 well above Street expectations (EPS 9.35 and ~$7.9B revenue), which materially lifted forward earnings power and valuation arguments. Reuters: Garmin forecasts upbeat annual results
• Positive Sentiment: Capital returns accelerated: a new $500M share repurchase program plus a ~17% dividend increase (quarterly $1.05) signal management confidence and return cash to shareholders — a near-term demand support for the stock. MarketBeat: Garmin jumps on guidance, buybacks and dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Product and segment momentum: new product launches (Catalyst 2, zūmo XT3) and sustained strength in Fitness, Aviation and Marine support durable revenue growth and margin upside. PR Newswire: Garmin Catalyst 2
• Neutral Sentiment: Margins and segment mix: gross margin saw modest contraction but operational improvements offset much of it; Outdoors and Automotive OEM remain weaker — watch margin trends in upcoming quarters. Seeking Alpha: Q4 review
• Negative Sentiment: Minor insider sell: Garmin’s CFO sold 479 shares (disclosed), a small reduction that some investors may read as a cautionary signal despite the broader company-level buyback and dividend actions. SEC Filing: Insider Sale

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upgraded Garmin from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $208.00 to $217.00 in a report on Friday, January 16th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Garmin in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Garmin in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Garmin from $193.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Longbow Research raised shares of Garmin from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Garmin has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $244.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 10,431 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.23, for a total value of $2,151,185.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 135,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,878,171.40. The trade was a 7.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Patrick Desbois sold 3,678 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.40, for a total value of $773,851.20. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 61,798 shares in the company, valued at $13,002,299.20. The trade was a 5.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,073 shares of company stock worth $3,540,774. Company insiders own 15.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Garmin

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Garmin in the second quarter valued at about $410,304,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Garmin by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,698,329 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,111,435,000 after buying an additional 1,273,163 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in Garmin by 649.2% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,256,668 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $309,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,938 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC acquired a new position in Garmin during the 4th quarter worth approximately $214,382,000. Finally, Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Garmin by 138.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 1,158,702 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $247,255,000 after purchasing an additional 671,859 shares during the last quarter. 81.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Garmin Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $207.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.33. The firm has a market cap of $45.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.00.

Garmin Company Profile

Garmin Ltd. is a technology company best known for designing and manufacturing navigation, communication and information devices that leverage global positioning system (GPS) technology. The company serves a diverse set of markets including consumer fitness and wearables, automotive navigation, aviation avionics, marine electronics and outdoor handheld devices. Garmin’s products combine hardware, mapping and software services to deliver location-aware solutions for personal, recreational and professional uses.

Garmin’s product lineup includes wearable fitness and multisport watches (Forerunner, Fenix, Venu), cycling computers and accessories (Edge, Varia), handheld and handheld-mounted GPS devices for outdoor activities, automotive and portable navigation units, marine chartplotters and fishfinders, and certified avionics for fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft.