‹ Corsair Gaming
Ch 2 · Margins Up, Cash Building
Chapter 2 · Financial Health
Revenue slipped — but margins, profit, and cash all moved the right way.
An operational turnaround you can see in the numbers.
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✦ The bottom line
Corsair's gross margin jumped 500 basis points to 32%, Adjusted EBITDA grew 58% to $35M, and cash increased — even as revenue dipped. The business got healthier while the top line did not.
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✦ Teach me
Cents kept per dollar of sales
Of every $1 of revenue, the cents left after the cost of making the gear (before overhead). For a hardware company, even a few cents of margin improvement on a big revenue base means a lot more profit.
Wall Street calls this
Gross margin
Corsair's margin gained *5 cents* per dollar in a year. That alone explains most of the profit jump.
Margin recovery · gross margin
32
%
Gross margin expanded 500 basis points (~5 cents per dollar) — driven by the mix shift to higher-margin peripherals and better cost control.
Source · 8-K · Item 2.02 — Q1 2026 highlights (gross margin) · Q1 2026 · Filed May 7, 2026
Five cents of margin on $354M of revenue is meaningful money. Combined with disciplined operating costs, it shows up as a much bigger jump in profitability than the revenue picture suggests. The standard measure investors track is 'adjusted EBITDA' — essentially profit before the accounting noise. It grew sharply.
Profit, growing · Adjusted EBITDA
$35
M
Adjusted EBITDA jumped 58% year over year to $35M — Corsair's second straight quarter of double-digit EBITDA margins.
Source · 8-K · Item 2.02 — Q1 2026 highlights (Adjusted EBITDA) · Q1 2026 · Filed May 7, 2026
Profit on paper is one thing; cash in the bank is what keeps the business running. Despite the revenue dip, Corsair generated cash in the quarter — and the balance grew. That's the cleanest sign that the operational improvements are real, not just an accounting story.
Real money · cash generated
$30
M
About $30M of operating cash this quarter, and cash on hand grew $20M sequentially — the books and the bank account agree.
Source · 10-Q · Statements of Cash Flows (net cash from operations) · Q1 2026 · Filed May 7, 2026
Strong
Margins +500bp, EBITDA +58%, cash building — operating discipline showing up in every line.
You just finished
Chapter 2 · FINANCIAL HEALTH
Margins Up, Cash Building
you now read: cents kept per dollar (margins)
Up next
Then
Chapter 4 · MANAGEMENT
The Operator Took Over
Chapter 5 · BEHIND THE NUMBERS
The Story Behind the Numbers
Chapter 6 · RISK
Cycles, Competition, and Consumer Mood