Executive Summary

Q2 2025 revenue rose 62.7% year over year to $683.5M; Adjusted Diluted EPS was $0.95 and Adjusted EBITDA was $117.2M, reflecting scale benefits from the Marcum acquisition and disciplined cost controls .
Versus consensus: Adjusted EPS beat by ~+$0.11 ($0.95 vs $0.84*), while revenue missed by ~$17.9M ($683.5M vs $701.4M*). Adjusted EBITDA outperformed company-reported levels relative to consensus ($117.2M vs $108.9M*), with definitional caveats. Bold takeaway: EPS beat, revenue miss .
Guidance maintained for 2025 (revenue $2.8B–$2.95B; GAAP EPS $1.97–$2.02; Adjusted EPS $3.60–$3.65; Adjusted EBITDA $450M–$456M) with management signaling performance toward the low end amid macro and pricing headwinds .
Call catalysts: pricing pushback (rate increases ~200–300 bps below expectations), discretionary advisory softness, proactive revenue/cost actions, leverage at ~3.7x with ~$400M revolver availability and ~1M shares repurchased for ~$71M in Q2 .

Note: Consensus estimates marked with * are from S&P Global; values retrieved from S&P Global.

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

Adjusted EPS and Adjusted EBITDA grew 63.8% and 127.9% YoY; CEO: “strong earnings… amidst challenging market conditions,” highlighting recurring services, retention, cash flow, and disciplined costs .
Benefits & Insurance segment delivered broad-based improvements; Q2 revenue up ~5% YoY to $102M and Adjusted EBITDA margin ~20% (+260 bps) per CFO .
Marcum integration progressing; CEO: “one of the most important and value-creating strategic decisions,” expanding client base, geographic presence (largest outside Big Four in NY), and enabling investments in AI/technology and offshoring .

What Went Wrong

Pricing headwinds: realized rate increases ~4% year-to-date, 200–300 bps below prior years, creating an estimated full-year ~$75M revenue headwind .
Discretionary, market-sensitive advisory and SEC-related attest work remained pressured (smaller deal sizes, fewer IPOs/debt issuance), limiting growth atop 2024 high-water marks .
Higher interest expense from acquisition financing (+$22M YoY in Q2) and mixed tax dynamics pressured GAAP earnings, with GAAP EPS at $0.66 in Q2 .

Financial Results

Consolidated Performance vs Prior Year and Prior Quarter

Metric	Q2 2024	Q1 2025	Q2 2025
Revenue ($USD)	$420,012,000	$838,014,000	$683,496,000
Gross Margin %	12.8%	27.2%	12.9%
Operating Income ($USD)	$31,594,000 (7.6%)	$200,032,000 (23.9%)	$60,272,000 (8.9%)
Interest Expense ($USD)	$5,884,000	$25,156,000	$27,867,000
Net Income ($USD)	$19,793,000	$122,773,000	$41,942,000
GAAP Diluted EPS	$0.39	$1.91	$0.66
Adjusted Diluted EPS	$0.58	$2.29	$0.95
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD)	$51,406,000	$237,620,000	$117,153,000

Versus Wall Street Consensus (Q2 2025)

Metric	Consensus (S&P Global)*	Actual (Company)	Surprise
Revenue ($USD)	$701,425,000*	$683,496,000	Miss (~-$17.9M)
Primary EPS	0.84333*	0.95 (Adjusted Diluted EPS)	Beat (~+$0.11)
EBITDA ($USD)	$108,851,330*	$117,153,000 (Adjusted)	Beat (~+$8.3M)

Note: Consensus estimates marked with * are from S&P Global; values retrieved from S&P Global. EBITDA/“Primary EPS” definitional differences may exist between consensus and company’s adjusted metrics.

Segment Breakdown (Revenue and Gross Margin)

Segment	Q2 2024 Revenue	Q1 2025 Revenue	Q2 2025 Revenue	Q2 2024 Gross Margin	Q1 2025 Gross Margin	Q2 2025 Gross Margin
Financial Services	$309,233,000	$713,661,000	$569,819,000	$46,424,000	$203,168,000	$85,361,000
Benefits & Insurance	$97,419,000	$112,976,000	$101,929,000	$14,176,000	$27,618,000	$17,922,000
National Practices	$13,360,000	$11,377,000	$11,748,000	$1,332,000	$1,112,000	$1,267,000
Total	$420,012,000	$838,014,000	$683,496,000	$53,644,000	$228,102,000	$87,909,000

KPIs

KPI (End of Period)	Q2 2024	Q1 2025	Q2 2025
DSO (days)	95	96	87
Debt to Equity (%)	—	79.8%	82.2%
Cash & Cash Equivalents ($USD)	—	$8,850,000	$39,817,000
Net Debt & Leverage	—	—	Net debt ≈ $1.60B; leverage 3.7x; revolver availability ≈ $400M
Q2 Share Repurchases	—	—	~1,000,000 shares for ~$71,000,000

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance (Q1 2025)	Current Guidance (Q2 2025)	Change
Total Revenue	FY 2025	$2.8B–$2.95B	$2.8B–$2.95B	Maintained
Effective Tax Rate	FY 2025	~29%	~29%	Maintained
Diluted Share Count	FY 2025	64.5–65.0M	64.5–65.0M	Maintained
GAAP EPS	FY 2025	$1.97–$2.02	$1.97–$2.02	Maintained
Adjusted EPS	FY 2025	$3.60–$3.65	$3.60–$3.65	Maintained
Adjusted EBITDA	FY 2025	$450M–$456M	$450M–$456M	Maintained

Management indicated a bias toward the low end of revenue guidance given persistent market conditions in H2 2025 .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q4 2024, Q1 2025)	Current Period (Q2 2025)	Trend
Macro/tariffs & client discretion	FY24/Q4 set stage for 2025, with Marcum closing and typical seasonality amplified; 2025 outlook initially $2.90–$2.95B . Q1 noted uncertainty impacting non-recurring service lines and trimmed revenue range to $2.8–$2.95B .	Continued uncertainty around tariffs/geopolitics; clients delaying discretionary projects; nonrecurring advisory and SEC-related down; targeting low end of guidance .	Persistent headwind
Pricing discipline	Noted strong pricing history; no specific Q4 commentary. Q1 implied macro caution .	Rate increases averaged ~4% YTD (200–300 bps below expectations), ~$75M headwind; plan to apply CBIZ pricing tools/training across Marcum .	Weaker pricing power near term
Marcum integration & synergies	Marcum closed Nov 1; integration underway; 2025 guidance included integration costs .	Strong cultural fit; accelerated back-office integration; line-of-sight to surpass ~$25M synergy target, realized earlier than 2026; integration costs ~$75M FY25 .	Ahead of plan
AI/technology & offshoring	Future investments referenced with broader capabilities after Marcum .	Enhanced investments in AI/advanced tech, offshoring, automation, branding to expand margins/profitability .	Increasing focus
Capital allocation & leverage	New $2.0B credit facility established in FY24 with $556M unused as of YE .	Net debt ~$1.6B; leverage 3.7x; ~$400M revolver availability; ~1M shares repurchased for ~$71M; delever to ≤2.5x on 2026 exit rate .	Prudent deleveraging
Regulatory/legal / quality	FY24 included SEC/PCAOB sanctions risk disclosures tied to Marcum; quality emphasis .	Leadership restructure at CBIZ CPAs to strengthen methodology, quality, compliance and independence .	Strengthening quality infrastructure

Management Commentary

CEO: “We’re pleased to deliver strong earnings… with a high proportion of essential, recurring services, strong client retention, robust free cash flow, and disciplined cost management” .
CEO on Marcum: “one of the most important and value-creating strategic decisions… largest provider of our kind to middle-market clients… enabling investments in AI, offshoring, automation and branding” .
CFO: “Adjusted EBITDA margin was 17% in the quarter and 23% year-to-date… our annual target of 20–50 bps of margin improvement remains intact” .
CFO on capital: “Net debt ended the quarter at approximately $1.6B representing 3.7x leverage… ~$400M of available liquidity… repurchased ~~1M shares (~~$71M)” .

Q&A Highlights

Advisory demand cadence: second half modeled similar to first half; maintaining levels off 2024 highs despite macro caution; consensus among competitors of client delays in discretionary spend .
Pricing pushback: clients prioritizing cost controls; rate increases ~4% YTD vs mid/high-single-digit history; CBIZ expects pricing normalization with improved market and anticipates Marcum uplift from CBIZ pricing tools/training .
Integration costs & synergies: FY25 integration expenses ~ $75M; similar levels expected in 2026; line-of-sight to surpass ~$25M synergy target earlier than planned .
Free cash flow profile: seasonal working capital use in Q1—collections over balance of year; updates include higher interest and tax dynamics post-acquisition .
SEC attest practice: valuable proposition yet market-dependent; activity down vs mid-2023 peaks (IPO/debt issuance softness) .

Estimates Context

Q2 2025	Consensus (S&P Global)*	Actual (Company)
Revenue ($USD)	$701,425,000*	$683,496,000
Primary EPS	0.84333*	0.95 (Adjusted)
EBITDA ($USD)	$108,851,330*	$117,153,000 (Adjusted)

Implications: Expect estimate revisions to reflect stronger EPS/EBITDA execution but weaker revenue trajectory amid price pressure and discretionary softness. Note potential definitional differences between consensus “Primary EPS/EBITDA” and company reported adjusted metrics.
Note: Consensus estimates marked with * are from S&P Global; values retrieved from S&P Global.

Key Takeaways for Investors

EPS/EBITDA execution outpaced consensus despite revenue headwinds; the mix shift toward recurring essential services and reduced incentive comp supported margins—near-term EPS resilience even with softer discretionary demand .
Guidance is unchanged but skewed to the low end on revenue; monitor pricing recovery and advisory pipeline stabilization; management is proactively driving cross-selling and cost actions .
Integration momentum accelerating—synergies tracking ahead of plan; watch updates on 2026 targets and integration cost phasing .
Balance sheet/liquidity position remains solid with ~$400M revolver and 3.7x leverage; buybacks reflect disciplined capital deployment while deleveraging remains priority .
SEC attest activity is a near-term drag given market conditions; upside optionality if IPO/debt markets normalize .
Quality and compliance investments (CBIZ CPAs leadership restructure) should support attest operations and mitigate regulatory risk, an important underpinning for the medium-term thesis .
Trading lens: near-term catalysts include pricing trajectory, discretionary demand inflection, and synergy updates; expect the stock to react to evidence of revenue stabilization coupled with sustained margin delivery and deleveraging progress .

Additional Relevant Q2 2025 Press Releases

CBIZ CPAs leadership restructure to strengthen operations, quality, compliance, and independence—supports attest practice alignment post-acquisition .

CBIZ, Inc. (CBZ)·Q2 2025 Earnings Summary