Dycom Industries reported record fiscal second-quarter earnings but slightly lagged revenue expectations, sending the telecommunications-contractor’s shares down more than 10% in pre-market trading on Wednesday. Contract revenue for the quarter ended 26 July rose 14.5% from a year earlier to $1.38 billion, about $30 million below analysts’ estimates. Profitability improved sharply: GAAP diluted earnings per share climbed 35.4% to $3.33, beating consensus by $0.41, while net income jumped 42.5% to $97.5 million. Adjusted EBITDA reached $205.5 million, representing a margin of 14.9%, up from 13.2% a year ago. Management cited continued demand for broadband and other digital-infrastructure projects and said the order backlog stood at $8 billion. The West Palm Beach, Florida-based company reaffirmed its full-year guidance for contract revenue of $5.29 billion to $5.43 billion and projected third-quarter sales of $1.38 billion to $1.43 billion with diluted EPS of $3.03 to $3.36. During the first half of the fiscal year Dycom repurchased 200,000 shares for $30.2 million, averaging $150.93 apiece, and ended the quarter with $28.5 million in cash.