Brink's (BCO)

Cash management services provider Brink's (NYSE:BCO) met Wall Streets revenue expectations in Q3 CY2025, with sales up 6.1% year on year to $1.34 billion. The company expects next quarter’s revenue to be around $1.36 billion, coming in 0.5% above analysts’ estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $2.08 per share was in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.

Company Overview

Known for its iconic armored trucks that have been a fixture in American cities since 1859, Brink's (NYSE:BCO) provides secure transportation and management of cash and valuables for banks, retailers, and other businesses worldwide.

Rising concerns over physical security, cybersecurity threats, and workplace safety regulations will present opportunities for companies in this sector. AI and digitization will enhance surveillance, access control, and threat detection, which could benefit key players in Safety & Security Services. These trends could also introduce ethical and regulatory concerns over data privacy and automated decision-making in security operations, giving rise to headline risks. Finally, increasing scrutiny on private security practices and evolving criminal justice policies again mean that companies in the space need to operate with the utmost care or risk being the poster child of abuse of power.

Brink's main competitors in the global cash management and secure logistics industry include Loomis AB (Sweden), Prosegur (Spain), and Garda World Security Corporation (Canada).

A company’s long-term performance is an indicator of its overall quality. Even a bad business can shine for one or two quarters, but a top-tier one grows for years.

With $5.15 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Brink's is one of the larger companies in the business services industry and benefits from a well-known brand that influences purchasing decisions.

As you can see below, Brink’s 7.4% annualized revenue growth over the last five years was solid. This shows it had high demand, a useful starting point for our analysis.

Long-term growth is the most important, but within business services, a half-decade historical view may miss new innovations or demand cycles. Brink’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed as its annualized revenue growth of 3.3% over the last two years was below its five-year trend.

This quarter, Brink's grew its revenue by 6.1% year on year, and its $1.34 billion of revenue was in line with Wall Street’s estimates. Company management is currently guiding for a 7.2% year-on-year increase in sales next quarter.

Looking further ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 5.2% over the next 12 months, an improvement versus the last two years. This projection is above the sector average and indicates its newer products and services will spur better top-line performance.

Operating margin is a key measure of profitability. Think of it as net income - the bottom line - excluding the impact of taxes and interest on debt, which are less connected to business fundamentals.

Brink's was profitable over the last five years but held back by its large cost base. Its average operating margin of 9.2% was weak for a business services business.

On the plus side, Brink’s operating margin rose by 4.9 percentage points over the last five years, as its sales growth gave it operating leverage.

This quarter, Brink's generated an operating margin profit margin of 11.4%, up 2.1 percentage points year on year. This increase was a welcome development and shows it was more efficient.

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.

Brink’s EPS grew at an astounding 19.9% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 7.4% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.

Diving into Brink’s quality of earnings can give us a better understanding of its performance. As we mentioned earlier, Brink’s operating margin expanded by 4.9 percentage points over the last five years. On top of that, its share count shrank by 16.9%. These are positive signs for shareholders because improving profitability and share buybacks turbocharge EPS growth relative to revenue growth.

Like with revenue, we analyze EPS over a more recent period because it can provide insight into an emerging theme or development for the business.

For Brink's, its two-year annual EPS growth of 9.4% was lower than its five-year trend. We hope its growth can accelerate in the future.

In Q3, Brink's reported adjusted EPS of $2.08, up from $1.51 in the same quarter last year. This print was close to analysts’ estimates. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects Brink’s full-year EPS of $7.61 to grow 16.2%.

If you’ve followed StockStory for a while, you know we emphasize free cash flow. Why, you ask? We believe that in the end, cash is king, and you can’t use accounting profits to pay the bills.

Brink's has shown decent cash profitability, giving it some flexibility to reinvest or return capital to investors. The company’s free cash flow margin averaged 6.9% over the last five years, slightly better than the broader business services sector.

Brink’s free cash flow clocked in at $77.4 million in Q3, equivalent to a 5.8% margin. This result was good as its margin was 5.2 percentage points higher than in the same quarter last year, but we wouldn’t put too much weight on the short term because investment needs can be seasonal, causing temporary swings. Long-term trends are more important.

EPS and free cash flow tell us whether a company was profitable while growing its revenue. But was it capital-efficient? A company’s ROIC explains this by showing how much operating profit it makes compared to the money it has raised (debt and equity).

Brink's historically did a mediocre job investing in profitable growth initiatives. Its five-year average ROIC was 11.7%, somewhat low compared to the best business services companies that consistently pump out 25%+.

Brink's reported $1.80 billion of cash and $4.32 billion of debt on its balance sheet in the most recent quarter. As investors in high-quality companies, we primarily focus on two things: 1) that a company’s debt level isn’t too high and 2) that its interest payments are not excessively burdening the business.

With $951.3 million of EBITDA over the last 12 months, we view Brink’s 2.6× net-debt-to-EBITDA ratio as safe. We also see its $40.6 million of annual interest expenses as appropriate. The company’s profits give it plenty of breathing room, allowing it to continue investing in growth initiatives.

It was good to see Brink's provide revenue guidance for next quarter that slightly beat analysts’ expectations.Zooming out, we think this was a decent quarter. The stock remained flat at $105.88 immediately after reporting.

Updated: December 4, 2025 at 11:08 PM EST

Before investing in or passing on Brink's, we urge you to understand the company’s business quality (or lack thereof), valuation, and the latest quarterly results - in that order.

There are things to like about Brink's. To kick things off, its revenue growth was solid over the last five years. Plus, Brink’s astounding EPS growth over the last five years shows its profits are trickling down to shareholders, and its projected EPS for the next year implies the company will continue generating shareholder value.

Brink’s P/E ratio based on the next 12 months is 13.5x. Looking at the business services landscape right now, Brink's trades at a pretty interesting price. For those confident in the business and its management team, this is a good time to invest.

Wall Street analysts have a consensus one-year price target of $133.50 on the company (compared to the current share price of $116.40), implying they see 14.7% upside in buying Brink's in the short term.