Block raises 2026 outlook; AI handled nearly all June code

Block raised its full-year 2026 guidance after reporting a strong second quarter. Gross profit increased 25% year over year to $3.17 billion and adjusted operating income reached $855 million, results the company disclosed in a filing and shareholder letter on Wednesday.

Adjusted diluted earnings per share were $1.02, above the Wall Street consensus of $0.87. In response to the first-half performance, Block raised its full-year gross profit forecast to $12.51 billion from $12.33 billion and lifted adjusted operating income guidance to $3.47 billion from $3.34 billion. In the earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Amrita Ahuja described the guidance as reflecting “the strength of our first-half execution and the momentum we’re carrying into the second half of 2026.”

The company attributed quarterly gains to growth in both Cash App and Square. Block reported gross profit above its prior internal guidance and said adjusted operating income for the quarter exceeded its own outlook. The filing did not provide a detailed split of contributions between Cash App and Square.

Block wrote in a shareholder note that agentic AI-software that can take autonomous actions to write and review code-handled nearly all production code changes in June. The disclosure followed an AI-driven restructuring announced earlier in the year that reduced headcount by roughly 4,000 employees in February 2026. Owen Jennings, Block’s business lead, told analysts that code changes per engineer were up 150% compared with the start of the year.

The filing and shareholder letter also pointed to continued demand across the company’s payments and financial services units as a factor in the quarter’s results. Block previously changed its corporate name from Square as it expanded into consumer and business financial products, including Cash App and merchant services.