Fortrea Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: FTRE) saw its stock price surge 7.97% in pre-market trading on Monday, following the release of its better-than-expected first-quarter 2025 financial results. The clinical research organization delivered a significant earnings beat and surpassed revenue expectations, demonstrating resilience in a challenging market environment.

The company reported quarterly earnings of $0.02 per share, surpassing the analyst consensus estimate of $(0.07) by 128.57%. This represents a remarkable 140% improvement from the losses of $(0.05) per share reported in the same period last year. Fortrea's quarterly sales reached $651.30 million, exceeding the analyst consensus estimate of $608.34 million by 7.06%. However, it's worth noting that this figure still represents a slight 1.63% decrease compared to sales of $662.10 million in the same quarter of the previous year.

Despite facing challenges, including a non-cash goodwill impairment charge that resulted in a GAAP net loss of $(562.9) million, Fortrea's adjusted EBITDA of $30.3 million and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.02x for the quarter (1.14x for the trailing 12 months) signal underlying strength in the business. The company's ability to outperform expectations in a difficult operating environment has clearly resonated with investors, driving the significant pre-market stock price increase.