Diagnostics company Guardant Health (NASDAQ: GH) reported Q2 CY2026 results beating Wall Street’s revenue expectations, with sales up 44.3% year on year to $335 million. The company’s full-year revenue guidance of $1.35 billion at the midpoint came in 2.7% above analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP loss of $0.42 per share was 7.8% below analysts’ consensus estimates.
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Guardant Health (GH) Q2 CY2026 Highlights:
- Revenue: $335 million vs analyst estimates of $314.7 million (44.3% year-on-year growth, 6.4% beat)
- Adjusted EPS: -$0.42 vs analyst expectations of -$0.39 (7.8% miss)
- Adjusted EBITDA: -$55.9 million (-16.7% margin, 7.7% year-on-year decline)
- The company lifted its revenue guidance for the full year to $1.35 billion at the midpoint from $1.31 billion, a 3.1% increase
- Operating Margin: -38.5%, up from -45.9% in the same quarter last year
- Free Cash Flow was -$69.54 million compared to -$65.93 million in the same quarter last year
- Market Capitalization: $19.1 billion
Company Overview
Pioneering the field of "liquid biopsy" with technology that can identify cancer-specific genetic mutations from a simple blood draw, Guardant Health (NASDAQ: GH) develops blood tests that detect and monitor cancer by analyzing tumor DNA in the bloodstream, helping doctors make treatment decisions without invasive biopsies.
Revenue Growth
A company’s long-term performance is an indicator of its overall quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but the best consistently grow over the long haul. Thankfully, Guardant Health’s 29.6% annualized revenue growth over the last five years was exceptional. Its growth beat the average healthcare company and shows its offerings resonate with customers.
We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within healthcare, a half-decade historical view may miss recent innovations or disruptive industry trends. Guardant Health’s annualized revenue growth of 35.6% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was strong and recently accelerated. 
This quarter, Guardant Health reported magnificent year-on-year revenue growth of 44.3%, and its $335 million of revenue beat Wall Street’s estimates by 6.4%.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 25.8% over the next 12 months, a deceleration versus the last two years. Despite the slowdown, this projection is noteworthy and suggests the market sees success for its products and services.
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Adjusted Operating Margin
Guardant Health’s high expenses have contributed to an average adjusted operating margin of negative 46.2% over the last five years. Unprofitable healthcare companies require extra attention because they could get caught swimming naked when the tide goes out. It’s hard to trust that the business can endure a full cycle.
On the plus side, Guardant Health’s adjusted operating margin rose by 60.1 percentage points over the last five years, as its sales growth gave it operating leverage. Zooming in on its more recent performance, we can see the company’s trajectory is intact as its margin has also increased by 27.7 percentage points on a two-year basis. These data points are very encouraging and show momentum is on its side.
Guardant Health’s adjusted operating margin was negative 19.9% this quarter.
Earnings Per Share
We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.
Although Guardant Health’s full-year earnings are still negative, it reduced its losses and improved its EPS by 14.1% annually over the last five years. The next few quarters will be critical for assessing its long-term profitability. We hope to see an inflection point soon.
In Q2, Guardant Health reported adjusted EPS of negative $0.42, up from negative $0.44 in the same quarter last year. Despite growing year on year, this print missed analysts’ estimates. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects Guardant Health to improve its earnings losses. Analysts forecast its full-year EPS will improve from negative $1.76 to negative $0.99.
Key Takeaways from Guardant Health’s Q2 Results
We were impressed by how significantly Guardant Health blew past analysts’ revenue expectations this quarter. We were also glad its full-year revenue guidance exceeded Wall Street’s estimates. On the other hand, its EPS missed. Overall, we think this was a solid quarter with some key areas of upside. The stock traded up 6.8% to $162.68 immediately following the results.
Guardant Health put up rock-solid earnings, but one quarter doesn’t necessarily make the stock a buy. Let’s see if this is a good investment. When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
