--- title: "Cummins posts record $1.8 billion EBITDA on AI power demand, then cuts guidance on pickup trucks" description: "Cummins printed a record EBITDA quarter on data-center power demand, then cut its full-year revenue outlook on weak US pickup trucks, missed Street estimates, and reported it one day after the stock dropped 5.3% on election-driven selling across data-center names." publisher: "The Inference" section: "Power" published: 2026-11-05T18:15:46.370Z modified: 2026-11-05T18:15:46.370Z canonical: https://theinference.org/article/cummins-posts-record-1-8-billion-ebitda-on-ai-power-demand-then-cuts-guidance-on-pickup-trucks language: en keywords: "Earnings, Power Generation, Data Centers, Guidance" --- # Cummins posts record $1.8 billion EBITDA on AI power demand, then cuts guidance on pickup trucks > Cummins printed a record EBITDA quarter on data-center power demand, then cut its full-year revenue outlook on weak US pickup trucks, missed Street estimates, and reported it one day after the stock dropped 5.3% on election-driven selling across data-center names. [Cummins](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/cummins) [filed its third-quarter results with the SEC](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/26172/000002617226000035/0000026172-26-000035-index.htm) this morning, and the headline is real: EBITDA of $1.8 billion was a record 18.9% of sales, net income more than doubled to $1.14 billion, and diluted EPS hit $8.25 against $3.86 a year ago [1]. But the print missed Wall Street, revenue of $9.44 billion against a $9.87 billion estimate, and the company cut full-year revenue growth guidance to roughly 10% from 10% to 13% [1][4]. The stock had already [fallen 5.3% the day before](https://weissratings.com/en/instant-news-alerts/cummins-inc-cmi-down-5-3-should-i-scale-back-here) to $474.15, about 36% below its June high of $737.76 [2]. A record quarter that needed to beat, and did not. ## Data center power is carrying the record Power Systems, the generator and high-horsepower engine unit, is the whole story. Its sales rose 15% to $2.3 billion on data-center demand in the United States, China and Asia Pacific, and its EBITDA margin hit 25.4% of sales, up from 22.9% [1]. In August the company booked its largest-ever battery energy storage deployment for a large US data center project [1]. CEO [Jennifer Rumsey](https://theinference.org/markets/people/jennifer-rumsey) called global demand for power generation equipment exceptionally strong and guided fourth-quarter revenue to a new record [1][4]. *Chart: **Power Systems earns 25.4 cents of EBITDA per sales dollar, far ahead of Cummins' other units** Bars ranking Cummins segments by Q3 2026 EBITDA margin, Power Systems highest* *Segment EBITDA as a percent of segment sales, Q3 2026. Source: Cummins Q3 2026 press release furnished in Form 8-K, November 5, 2026. [1]* ## The complication is a consumer truck rollover The guidance cut came from one soft spot: North American pickup truck demand, which Rumsey said has weakened and is expected to persist through year-end [1][4]. Distribution's margin also slipped to 13.9% from 15.5% despite data-center demand [1]. Meanwhile Accelera, the zero-emissions unit, shrank by choice: sales down 15% to $103 million with a $56 million EBITDA loss as electrolyzer sales wind down under strategic review [1]. The diesel-and-generator boom is subsidizing its retreat. Investors should also strip $0.54 per share of favorable discrete tax items from the EPS [1]. ## Same boom, weaker profit elsewhere The same day, Cummins India [fell as much as 14%](https://www.cnbctv18.com/market/cummins-india-share-price-q2-results-miss-cost-pressures-impact-margins-20027475.htm) after its own quarter missed badly: EBITDA margin down 658 basis points to 15.36% on commodity and freight costs, profit down 26.7% [3]. Power-generation demand does not guarantee profitability, even inside the same group. ## What settles it Watch two readings: whether Q4 revenue sets the promised record, and whether Power Systems holds a mid-20s margin as US data-center policy risk, the force behind the November 4 selloff, plays out [1][2]. ## Takeaway Cummins set a record on AI power demand and cut guidance on pickup trucks in the same quarter, leaving a record Q4 as the proof point. ## Sources 1. [SEC EDGAR, Cummins Inc. Form 8-K and Q3 2026 press release (Exhibit 99), filed 5 November 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/26172/000002617226000035/0000026172-26-000035-index.htm) 2. [Weiss Ratings, Cummins Inc. (CMI) Down 5.3% - Should I Scale Back Here?, 5 November 2026](https://weissratings.com/en/instant-news-alerts/cummins-inc-cmi-down-5-3-should-i-scale-back-here) 3. [CNBC TV18, Cummins India shares in focus after Q2 results miss; cost pressures impact margins, 5 November 2026](https://www.cnbctv18.com/market/cummins-india-share-price-q2-results-miss-cost-pressures-impact-margins-20027475.htm) 4. [24/7 Wall St., Cummins CMI Q3 2026: Data Center Strength Meets Pickup Truck Drag, 5 November 2026](https://247wallst.com/cards/cummins-q3-2026-earnings-cmi-01m6nwa4v7gv2jkqtsm31jv82e) --- Cummins posts record $1.8 billion EBITDA on AI power demand, then cuts guidance on pickup trucks — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/cummins-posts-record-1-8-billion-ebitda-on-ai-power-demand-then-cuts-guidance-on-pickup-trucks