RankAlpha logo
Back to Rankings

FLY

Firefly AerospaceC
Nasdaq / Capital Goods
Last Price
Quote time unavailable
View Chart
Documents
32
Stored
Transcripts
1
Recent loaded
Latest report
2026-08-12
Investor release

Document history

Earnings documents stored for FLY.

12 shown
Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-12

Firefly Aerospace Inc (FLY) (Q2 2026) Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenue and Backlog ...

GuruFocus.com
This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Revenue: Record second-quarter revenue of $117.7 million, a 46% sequential increase and a 659% increase year over year. Revenue by Segment: Spacecraft revenue was $108.3 million; launch revenue was $9.4 million. Backlog: Record total backlog of approximately $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the prior quarter. Gross Margin (GAAP): 20.3%, compared with 21.6% in the first quarter. Operating Expenses (GAAP): $119.1 million, compared with $113.1 million in the first quarter. Operating Loss (GAAP): $95.2 million, compared with a loss of $95.7 million in the prior quarter. Net Loss (GAAP): $92.3 million, compared with a net loss of $96.7 million in the first quarter. Net Loss per Share (GAAP): $0.57, compared with a loss of $0.61 in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA: Loss of $61.2 million, compared with a loss of $64.7 million in the first quarter. Liquidity: Total liquidity of $940.3 million, including $635.3 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. Capital Expenditures: $24.8 million, up from $16.3 million sequentially. Free Cash Flow: Outflow of $106.3 million, compared with an outflow of $78.9 million in the first quarter. 2026 Revenue Guidance: Reiterated range of $420 million to $450 million. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 2 Warning Sign with FLY. Is FLY fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Release Date: August 11, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Record Q2 revenue of $117.7 million, a 659% year-over-year increase, and a record backlog of $1.5 billion. Won multiple flagship contracts, including two additional NASA lunar missions, a $75 million MoonFall subcontract, and a $94 million Space Force GBARD contract. Strategic acquisition of Space-ng enhances vertical integration with AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems. Strong demand for Alpha launch vehicle, with majority of 2027 manifest sold and Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement extended to 2031. Eclipse development progressing well, with Miranda engine surpassing 150 hot-fire tests and completing a flight-like mission duty-cycle test. GAAP net loss of $92.3 million in Q2, though improved from $96.7 million in Q1. Free cash flow outflow increased to $106.3 million, partly due to the final SciTec acquisition payment.…Read full document

This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Revenue: Record second-quarter revenue of $117.7 million, a 46% sequential increase and a 659% increase year over year. Revenue by Segment: Spacecraft revenue was $108.3 million; launch revenue was $9.4 million. Backlog: Record total backlog of approximately $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the prior quarter. Gross Margin (GAAP): 20.3%, compared with 21.6% in the first quarter. Operating Expenses (GAAP): $119.1 million, compared with $113.1 million in the first quarter. Operating Loss (GAAP): $95.2 million, compared with a loss of $95.7 million in the prior quarter. Net Loss (GAAP): $92.3 million, compared with a net loss of $96.7 million in the first quarter. Net Loss per Share (GAAP): $0.57, compared with a loss of $0.61 in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA: Loss of $61.2 million, compared with a loss of $64.7 million in the first quarter. Liquidity: Total liquidity of $940.3 million, including $635.3 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. Capital Expenditures: $24.8 million, up from $16.3 million sequentially. Free Cash Flow: Outflow of $106.3 million, compared with an outflow of $78.9 million in the first quarter. 2026 Revenue Guidance: Reiterated range of $420 million to $450 million. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 2 Warning Sign with FLY. Is FLY fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Release Date: August 11, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Record Q2 revenue of $117.7 million, a 659% year-over-year increase, and a record backlog of $1.5 billion. Won multiple flagship contracts, including two additional NASA lunar missions, a $75 million MoonFall subcontract, and a $94 million Space Force GBARD contract. Strategic acquisition of Space-ng enhances vertical integration with AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems. Strong demand for Alpha launch vehicle, with majority of 2027 manifest sold and Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement extended to 2031. Eclipse development progressing well, with Miranda engine surpassing 150 hot-fire tests and completing a flight-like mission duty-cycle test. GAAP net loss of $92.3 million in Q2, though improved from $96.7 million in Q1. Free cash flow outflow increased to $106.3 million, partly due to the final SciTec acquisition payment. Alpha launch cadence reduced to three launches in 2026, with Flight 8 delayed to Q4. Gross margin slightly declined to 20.3% from 21.6% in Q1, due to Forge hardware purchases. Heavy reliance on government contracts (NASA, Space Force) exposes revenue to geopolitical and budgetary risks. Q: What are the biggest swing factors that could cause 2026 revenue to shake out at the high or low end of the guidance range, especially given the reduction in expected Alpha launches from four to three?A: CFO Darren Ma stated that the company reiterated its $420 million to $450 million revenue guidance, noting that 95% of the midpoint is already booked. The primary swing factor is the potential for winning additional CLPS lunar missions in the second half of the year, which could push results toward the higher end. The diversified revenue streams from spacecraft, AI software, and launch services help offset the impact of the reduced Alpha launch cadence. Q: Can you provide an update on the Alpha launch cadence and production ramp, given the strong demand environment?A: CEO Jason Kim highlighted that launch demand is the most constrained he has seen, with the majority of Alpha's 2027 manifest already sold. Flight 8 is in integration and test, targeting a Q4 launch, with Flight 9 entering the same phase. The factory is producing at record rates, with Flights 10 and 11 already in production. The company is adding a second launch pad at Wallops in 2027 and a third in Sweden in 2028 to support increased cadence. Q: How should we think about the profitability and cash flow milestones associated with the record $1.5 billion backlog as it converts to revenue?A: CFO Darren Ma explained that most contracts, particularly on the spacecraft side, are milestone-driven, providing cash as progress is made. The Blue Ghost lunar missions offer bolt-on opportunities for commercial payloads and imaging services like Ocula, which carry higher gross margins. As Alpha cadence increases, gross margins are expected to expand, with the path to profitability driven by operational milestones such as Alpha reaching rate cadence and completing Eclipse development. Q: Can you provide more details on the CLPS 2.0 proposal for a larger Blue Ghost lander variant and the expected opportunities for the rest of the year?A: CEO Jason Kim noted that NASA's Moon Base program requires landers with 2 to 4 tons and 8 tons of down-mass capability. Firefly has submitted a proposal for CLPS 2.0 with a scalable, modular design leveraging proven components from successful landings. For the remainder of 2026, there are three more CLPS 1.0 opportunities: two lander missions and one orbiter-imaging service. The company's expanded cleanroom capacity and vertical integration position it well to capture these awards. Q: What drove the strong sequential growth in spacecraft revenue, and can you break down the contributions from different programs?A: CFO Darren Ma attributed the growth to the team executing on five lunar missions in parallel, strong demand in AI software solutions, and an acceleration of a hardware order from a national-security customer. The diversified revenue streams across product lines provide resilience, with the company confident in achieving its annual guidance due to high backlog conversion rates. Q: What is the status of the Eclipse program, and when can we expect the first flight?A: CEO Jason Kim reported significant progress, with the Miranda engine surpassing 150 hot-fire tests, including a successful 226-second flight-like mission duty cycle. Qualification testing is imminent, and flight engine chambers are in production. The first stage is being prepared for delivery to co-developer Northrop Grumman, with the inaugural launch targeted for no earlier than 2027. The company is hardware-rich, with all first-stage components either in build or test. Q: How is the SciTec business performing, and what is the impact of geopolitical tensions on demand?A: CEO Jason Kim emphasized that conflicts, such as the Iran conflict, have increased demand for AI capabilities like Forge, which processes missile-warning and tracking data. The company recently won a $94 million Space Force contract for ground-based radar digitization (GBARD), leveraging the Forge playbook. CFO Darren Ma added that a national-security customer requested acceleration of a hardware order, highlighting strong demand in this segment. Q: Can you provide an update on the tactically responsive space missions and the relationship with True Anomaly?A: CEO Jason Kim confirmed that the Space Force directed the future tactically responsive space mission to utilize the upgraded Alpha Block II to launch True Anomaly's Jackal at a later date. This mission will build on lessons learned from previous VICTUS missions. The company remains bullish on this capability, with the Space Force's tactically responsive space budget potentially quadrupling from 2026 to 2027. Q: How should we think about the revenue mix between spacecraft and launch for the rest of the year?A: CFO Darren Ma indicated that the mix for the remainder of 2026 is expected to be approximately 85% spacecraft and 15% launch. This reflects the strong performance of the spacecraft business, which recognizes revenue over time, versus the event-driven launch business. Q: What is the demand and revenue contribution outlook for the Elytra spacecraft product line?A: CEO Jason Kim highlighted multiple Elytra contracts, including the Defense Innovation Unit's Sinequone mission, the MoonFall program with JPL, and its role as a transfer vehicle for Blue Ghost missions. CFO Darren Ma added that Elytra's contribution is often embedded within larger contracts, such as Blue Ghost Mission 2, which includes an Elytra orbiter, making it difficult to single out but strategically important for leveraging R&D investments. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-12

Firefly Aerospace Q2 Earnings Call Focuses on Backlog and Alpha Ramp

Zacks
Firefly Aerospace Inc. FLY emphasized backlog conversion, spacecraft scale and a higher launch-production rate on its second-quarter 2026 call. Management framed demand as strong across lunar, defense and launch programs, with execution the main variable. Non-GAAP loss per share was 42 cents, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a 50-cent loss. Revenues of $117.7 million surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $89.6 million by $28.1 million. Firefly Aerospace, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Firefly Aerospace, Inc. Quote Chief financial officer (CFO) Darren Ma said Spacecraft Solutions generated $108.3 million in revenues, versus $9.4 million from Launch. Drivers included five lunar missions, AI software and an accelerated national-security hardware order. Darren Ma said 95% of revenues at the midpoint of 2026 guidance is booked. Spacecraft revenues are milestone-based and less event-driven than Alpha launches. Darren Ma said backlog reached about $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the first quarter. Awards included two NASA lunar missions and Lockheed Martin’s Alpha agreement extension. CFO Darren Ma reiterated 2026 revenue guidance of $420-$450 million. Management now targets three Alpha launches in 2026, including Flights 8 and 9 later this year. In the Q&A session, a KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst asked whether strength outside Alpha was offsetting the lower launch count. Darren Ma pointed to lunar programs, FORGE, Golden Dome and recent contract wins as offsets. Darren Ma added that another CLPS award late in the year could push revenues toward the upper end. He tied the outlook to execution, with most expected 2026 revenue under contract. Chief executive officer (CEO) Jason Kim said Flight 8 is targeted for the fourth quarter after acceptance testing, Vandenberg delivery, static fire and payload integration. Flight 9 is entering integration and test. CEO Jason Kim said demand is not the constraint. The majority of Alpha’s 2027 manifest is sold, while production throughput improved from May through August across composite structures, Reaver engines and subsystems. A Deutsche Bank analyst pressed for 2027 cadence. Jason Kim did not provide guidance, but cited growing hardware availability and launch-team repetition. He also maintained Eclipse’s inaugural launch timing at no earlier than 2027. CEO Jason Kim highlighted two additio…Read full document

Firefly Aerospace Inc. FLY emphasized backlog conversion, spacecraft scale and a higher launch-production rate on its second-quarter 2026 call. Management framed demand as strong across lunar, defense and launch programs, with execution the main variable. Non-GAAP loss per share was 42 cents, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a 50-cent loss. Revenues of $117.7 million surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $89.6 million by $28.1 million. Firefly Aerospace, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Firefly Aerospace, Inc. Quote Chief financial officer (CFO) Darren Ma said Spacecraft Solutions generated $108.3 million in revenues, versus $9.4 million from Launch. Drivers included five lunar missions, AI software and an accelerated national-security hardware order. Darren Ma said 95% of revenues at the midpoint of 2026 guidance is booked. Spacecraft revenues are milestone-based and less event-driven than Alpha launches. Darren Ma said backlog reached about $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the first quarter. Awards included two NASA lunar missions and Lockheed Martin’s Alpha agreement extension. CFO Darren Ma reiterated 2026 revenue guidance of $420-$450 million. Management now targets three Alpha launches in 2026, including Flights 8 and 9 later this year. In the Q&A session, a KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst asked whether strength outside Alpha was offsetting the lower launch count. Darren Ma pointed to lunar programs, FORGE, Golden Dome and recent contract wins as offsets. Darren Ma added that another CLPS award late in the year could push revenues toward the upper end. He tied the outlook to execution, with most expected 2026 revenue under contract. Chief executive officer (CEO) Jason Kim said Flight 8 is targeted for the fourth quarter after acceptance testing, Vandenberg delivery, static fire and payload integration. Flight 9 is entering integration and test. CEO Jason Kim said demand is not the constraint. The majority of Alpha’s 2027 manifest is sold, while production throughput improved from May through August across composite structures, Reaver engines and subsystems. A Deutsche Bank analyst pressed for 2027 cadence. Jason Kim did not provide guidance, but cited growing hardware availability and launch-team repetition. He also maintained Eclipse’s inaugural launch timing at no earlier than 2027. CEO Jason Kim highlighted two additional Moon mission wins: a $144 million accelerated Blue Ghost CLPS mission and a $75 million MoonFall subcontract using Elytra. The accelerated Blue Ghost mission uses a near build-to-print configuration. In the Q&A session, Jason Kim said that three additional CLPS 1.0 opportunities remain in the second half: two lander missions and one orbiter imaging-service opportunity. Firefly also submitted a CLPS 2.0 proposal. Jason Kim said the CLPS 2.0 design is modular and aimed at multi-ton payload capability. He also cited quadrupled spacecraft cleanroom space and the Space-ng acquisition as capacity support. CFO Darren Ma said GAAP gross margin was 20.3%, down from 21.6% sequentially, mainly due to FORGE hardware purchases. He expects margins to expand as spacecraft volume rises and Alpha cadence improves. A Morgan Stanley analyst asked about profitability and cash milestones. Darren Ma said more Blue Ghost missions should spread fixed manufacturing overhead, while commercial payloads and Ocula imaging can add higher-margin revenue. Darren Ma said the path to positive EBITDA and free cash flow depends on Alpha reaching rate, completing Eclipse development and continuing the spacecraft ramp. Firefly ended the quarter with $940.3 million of total liquidity. CEO Jason Kim closed by emphasizing production scaling, spacecraft expansion and the integration of SciTec and Space-ng. His message centered on matching a broader contract base with operating capacity. Jason Kim acknowledged launch timing dependencies, including customer readiness, regulatory approvals, range availability and weather. The call paired confidence in demand with continued attention to schedule and production execution. FLY carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), with a Value Score of F, Growth Score of C, Momentum Score of D and VGM Score of F. Under Zacks’ framework, A and B scores are more favorable, especially alongside Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) stocks. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. The current mix gives FLY a less favorable near-term profile than the #1/#2 and A/B combinations emphasized by Zacks. The Zacks Rank can change as analyst earnings estimates are revised after the just-reported results, so the rating may move as revisions develop. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Firefly Aerospace, Inc. (FLY) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-12

Firefly Aerospace Inc. Q2 2026 Earnings Call Summary

Moby
Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Achieved record quarterly revenue exceeding $100 million for the first time, driven by parallel execution of five lunar missions and accelerated national security hardware orders. Backlog reached a record $1.5 billion, supported by flagship wins including NASA's MoonFall program and an extension of the Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement. Management attributes growth to a 'flywheel' effect where NASA serves as a base customer for lunar missions, allowing for high-margin commercial and international bolt-on payloads. Operational throughput increased significantly between May and August due to new automated fiber placement tooling and expanded subsystems production at the Cortex facility. The acquisition of Space-ng vertically integrated AI-powered vision navigation, which was previously proven during autonomous hazard avoidance on Blue Ghost Mission 1. Strategic positioning in the 'launch constrained' market has allowed Firefly to sell out the majority of Alpha's manifest through 2027. The SciTec division is leveraging its 'FORGE playbook' to expand from missile warning into legacy radar digitization and other adjacent national security domains. Reiterated full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $420 million to $450 million, with 95% of the midpoint already booked as of the Q2 call. Alpha launch cadence is targeting three total flights in 2026, with Flight 8 scheduled for Q4 followed by a thorough data review to inform subsequent 2027 missions. The Eclipse medium-lift vehicle is maturing toward a first stage delivery to Northrop Grumman no earlier than next year and an inaugural launch in 2027. Future lunar strategy involves competing for the $6 billion CLPS 2.0 program with modular lander designs capable of multi-ton payload delivery for moon-base infrastructure. Global expansion plans include bringing launch pads in Virginia and Sweden online by 2027 and 2028, respectively, to increase total cadence capacity. A $24 million final payment for the SciTec acquisition and the closing of the Space-ng transaction impacted quarterly free cash flow. Gross margins saw a modest sequential decline to 20.3% due to specific hardware purchases required to support urgent U.S. government needs during heightened geopolitical c…Read full document

Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Achieved record quarterly revenue exceeding $100 million for the first time, driven by parallel execution of five lunar missions and accelerated national security hardware orders. Backlog reached a record $1.5 billion, supported by flagship wins including NASA's MoonFall program and an extension of the Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement. Management attributes growth to a 'flywheel' effect where NASA serves as a base customer for lunar missions, allowing for high-margin commercial and international bolt-on payloads. Operational throughput increased significantly between May and August due to new automated fiber placement tooling and expanded subsystems production at the Cortex facility. The acquisition of Space-ng vertically integrated AI-powered vision navigation, which was previously proven during autonomous hazard avoidance on Blue Ghost Mission 1. Strategic positioning in the 'launch constrained' market has allowed Firefly to sell out the majority of Alpha's manifest through 2027. The SciTec division is leveraging its 'FORGE playbook' to expand from missile warning into legacy radar digitization and other adjacent national security domains. Reiterated full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $420 million to $450 million, with 95% of the midpoint already booked as of the Q2 call. Alpha launch cadence is targeting three total flights in 2026, with Flight 8 scheduled for Q4 followed by a thorough data review to inform subsequent 2027 missions. The Eclipse medium-lift vehicle is maturing toward a first stage delivery to Northrop Grumman no earlier than next year and an inaugural launch in 2027. Future lunar strategy involves competing for the $6 billion CLPS 2.0 program with modular lander designs capable of multi-ton payload delivery for moon-base infrastructure. Global expansion plans include bringing launch pads in Virginia and Sweden online by 2027 and 2028, respectively, to increase total cadence capacity. A $24 million final payment for the SciTec acquisition and the closing of the Space-ng transaction impacted quarterly free cash flow. Gross margins saw a modest sequential decline to 20.3% due to specific hardware purchases required to support urgent U.S. government needs during heightened geopolitical conflicts. Management highlighted that launch timing remains subject to external variables including regulatory approvals, range availability, and customer readiness. The company maintains a strong liquidity position of $940.3 million, bolstered by a $182.6 million net proceeds common stock offering completed in June. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here. Management clarified that while they are targeting three launches this year, the factory is 'hardware rich' with tanks for Flights 10 and 11 already in production. Demand is not the limiting factor; the focus is on ramping production to meet a manifest that is already largely sold out through 2027. Spacecraft and AI solutions are expected to comprise approximately 85% of revenue for the remainder of the year, providing a predictable offset to event-driven launch revenue. Upside to the current guidance range could be driven by winning additional NASA CLPS task orders expected in the second half of the year. Average Selling Prices (ASPs) are expected to increase over time as lower-priced legacy backlog is burned off and the company capitalizes on the supply-constrained market. The Lockheed Martin extension and hypersonic task orders reinforce confidence in the Block II Alpha's value proposition for high-priority missions. Management confirmed that the Victus Haze mission was shifted to a later date at the Space Force's direction to utilize the upgraded Alpha Block II vehicle. Firefly remains bullish on this sector, noting that the Space Force's budget for responsive space could potentially quadruple in coming years.

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-11

Firefly Aerospace Q2 Earnings Call Highlights

MarketBeat
Interested in Firefly Aerospace, Inc.? Here are five stocks we like better. Record growth: Firefly Aerospace reported Q2 revenue of $117.7 million, up 46% sequentially and 659% year over year, driven primarily by spacecraft programs and national-security software. Backlog reached a record $1.5 billion, and the company maintained its 2026 revenue outlook of $420 million to $450 million. Expanding space and defense pipeline: Firefly secured new lunar, Mars, and national-security contracts, including a $75 million MoonFall subcontract and a subsequent $94 million Space Force contract. The Space-ng acquisition also added AI-powered navigation and autonomous-guidance capabilities. Losses narrowed but cash use remained high: Q2 net loss improved to $92.3 million from $96.7 million in Q1, while adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $61.2 million. Firefly ended the quarter with $940.3 million in liquidity, despite negative free cash flow of $106.3 million and increased capital spending. Why Flywire and Airbnb Could Be Quiet Winners of a Ceasefire Firefly Aerospace (NASDAQ:FLY) reported second-quarter revenue of $117.7 million, its first quarterly result above $100 million, as spacecraft programs and national-security software contracts drove growth. Revenue increased 46% sequentially and 659% from the prior-year period, while backlog rose to a record $1.5 billion. Chief Executive Officer Jason Kim said the company’s momentum was supported by contract awards and development milestones across its Blue Ghost lunar landers, Elytra spacecraft, Alpha and Eclipse launch vehicles, FORGE software platform and Golden Dome-related work. The company also completed its acquisition of Space-ng, which provides AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance technology. → SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat The Space Race Just Hit a Bottleneck—Who Benefits? Firefly reiterated its 2026 revenue outlook of $420 million to $450 million. Chief Financial Officer Darren Ma said 95% of revenue at the midpoint of that range was already booked, with performance in spacecraft and AI software expected to offset some impact from launch timing. Spacecraft solutions accounted for $108.3 million of second-quarter revenue, while launch contributed $9.4 million. Ma said spacecraft revenue is generally recognized over time as contract milestones are completed, providing a mor…Read full document

Interested in Firefly Aerospace, Inc.? Here are five stocks we like better. Record growth: Firefly Aerospace reported Q2 revenue of $117.7 million, up 46% sequentially and 659% year over year, driven primarily by spacecraft programs and national-security software. Backlog reached a record $1.5 billion, and the company maintained its 2026 revenue outlook of $420 million to $450 million. Expanding space and defense pipeline: Firefly secured new lunar, Mars, and national-security contracts, including a $75 million MoonFall subcontract and a subsequent $94 million Space Force contract. The Space-ng acquisition also added AI-powered navigation and autonomous-guidance capabilities. Losses narrowed but cash use remained high: Q2 net loss improved to $92.3 million from $96.7 million in Q1, while adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $61.2 million. Firefly ended the quarter with $940.3 million in liquidity, despite negative free cash flow of $106.3 million and increased capital spending. Why Flywire and Airbnb Could Be Quiet Winners of a Ceasefire Firefly Aerospace (NASDAQ:FLY) reported second-quarter revenue of $117.7 million, its first quarterly result above $100 million, as spacecraft programs and national-security software contracts drove growth. Revenue increased 46% sequentially and 659% from the prior-year period, while backlog rose to a record $1.5 billion. Chief Executive Officer Jason Kim said the company’s momentum was supported by contract awards and development milestones across its Blue Ghost lunar landers, Elytra spacecraft, Alpha and Eclipse launch vehicles, FORGE software platform and Golden Dome-related work. The company also completed its acquisition of Space-ng, which provides AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance technology. → SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat The Space Race Just Hit a Bottleneck—Who Benefits? Firefly reiterated its 2026 revenue outlook of $420 million to $450 million. Chief Financial Officer Darren Ma said 95% of revenue at the midpoint of that range was already booked, with performance in spacecraft and AI software expected to offset some impact from launch timing. Spacecraft solutions accounted for $108.3 million of second-quarter revenue, while launch contributed $9.4 million. Ma said spacecraft revenue is generally recognized over time as contract milestones are completed, providing a more recurring component to the company’s revenue mix. Alpha launch revenue, by contrast, is recognized when a launch occurs. → 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can't Sit Still Will Firefly’s $855M SciTec Acquisition Ignite a Stock Re-Rating? Firefly said it was executing five lunar missions in parallel during the quarter. The company won its fifth and sixth moon mission contracts, including a NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services award for an accelerated Blue Ghost mission. That mission is intended to demonstrate repeatable lunar-surface access on a timeline roughly half that of Firefly’s first lunar landing, according to Kim. The company expects its Blue Ghost “Riders to the Dark” far-side lunar mission to launch early next year, subject to spacecraft delivery to Florida and confirmation of a launch window. Firefly has completed assembly of the lander’s main structural and fluid components and is integrating avionics and payloads. The mission will include a Blue Ghost lander, the European Space Agency’s Lunar Pathfinder satellite and an Elytra spacecraft. → Is Wingstop's Growth Story Losing Steam? Firefly also completed a critical design review for its Blue Ghost Mission 2 to the Gruithuisen Domes and a preliminary design review for its South Pole mission. It has submitted a proposal for NASA’s CLPS 2.0 program, which could involve larger lunar landers. Kim said Firefly’s scalable designs target multiton payload capability for lunar-base infrastructure. During the quarter, Firefly expanded its Cedar Park, Texas, campus and said it is more than quadrupling spacecraft clean-room capacity with support from a Texas Space Commission grant. The company also added its Gloworks Innovation Lab for research and development. Firefly received a $75 million subcontract through NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the MoonFall mission, under which Elytra will deliver JPL drones to the Moon’s South Pole in 2028. Since the end of the quarter, the company also won a $13 million JPL subcontract for NASA’s SkyFall Mars mission. Firefly will manufacture, test and deliver the mission’s aeroshell for a planned late-2028 launch. Kim said Elytra is also positioned for potential national-security applications, including transfer missions that could move small satellites from geostationary transfer orbit to geostationary orbit. Firefly’s Elytra spacecraft for the Defense Innovation Unit’s Project Sinequone is progressing toward a launch no earlier than next year. The Space-ng acquisition added approximately 15 software engineers and vertically integrated navigation, camera hardware and autonomous-guidance capabilities, Ma said. Firefly said Space-ng technology had been used during Blue Ghost Mission 1 for autonomous hazard avoidance and navigation during the final hour before landing. In its SciTec national-security software business, Firefly received a U.S. Air Force contract option to deliver an operational data-fusion system for a cloud-based command-and-control program. The Air Force Research Laboratory also awarded a contract for advanced algorithms and verification architecture involving deep learning and AI on small size, weight and power processors. Firefly said FORGE, its missile-warning and tracking data platform, integrated the GEO Wide Field of View spacecraft during the period and received a superior performance rating from the Department of Defense for support during the Iran conflict. After the quarter ended, Firefly SciTec won a $94 million Space Force contract under the Ground-Based Radar Digitization, or GBARD, effort. Firefly now targets the first Block 2 Alpha launch, Flight 8, for the fourth quarter. The vehicle is being prepared for acceptance testing, delivery to Vandenberg, static-fire testing, payload integration and launch. The company is targeting three Alpha launches in 2026, including Flights 8 and 9, and said Flights 10 and 11 are moving through production for next year. Kim said the majority of Alpha’s manifest through 2027 has been sold, aided by an extension of the company’s multi-launch agreement with Lockheed Martin through 2031. Firefly also received a second hypersonic task order from a confidential customer. The company plans to add a Wallops launchpad in Virginia next year, alongside its Vandenberg site, and targets a first launch from Sweden no earlier than 2028. Kim said demand for launch capacity remains constrained, though timing is subject to customer readiness, regulatory approvals, range availability and weather. For the Eclipse medium-lift vehicle, Firefly is working toward delivery of the first stage to co-developer Northrop Grumman no earlier than next year, with an inaugural launch planned no earlier than 2027. The Miranda engine has surpassed 150 hot-fire tests, including a 226-second flight-like mission-duty-cycle test. Second-quarter GAAP gross margin was 20.3%, compared with 21.6% in the first quarter. Ma attributed the decline primarily to FORGE hardware purchases supporting a U.S. government program during heightened geopolitical conflict. GAAP operating loss was $95.2 million, compared with $95.7 million in the first quarter. GAAP net loss was $92.3 million, or $0.57 per share, compared with a $96.7 million loss, or $0.61 per share, in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA loss was $61.2 million, improving from a $64.7 million loss in the first quarter. Free cash flow was negative $106.3 million, including an approximately $24 million final payment related to the SciTec acquisition. Firefly ended the quarter with total liquidity of $940.3 million, comprising $635.3 million in cash equivalents and short-term investments and $305 million of undrawn revolving-credit capacity. Cash included approximately $182.6 million in net proceeds from a June common-stock offering. Ma said capital expenditures increased to $24.8 million from $16.3 million in the first quarter, reflecting investments in Alpha Block 2 test infrastructure and spacecraft manufacturing capacity. He said Firefly expects gross-margin expansion and operating leverage as production increases and operational efficiency improves. Firefly Aerospace (NASDAQ:FLY) is a U.S.-based aerospace company that designs, manufactures and operates launch vehicles and in-space systems for commercial, civil and national security customers. The company focuses on providing end-to-end small- and medium-lift launch services, mission integration and spacecraft hardware to support satellite deployment and on-orbit operations. Firefly's product portfolio includes the Alpha small launch vehicle, developed to carry small satellites to low Earth orbit, and plans for larger vehicles and in-space capabilities to address a range of payload sizes and mission profiles. This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected]. The article "Firefly Aerospace Q2 Earnings Call Highlights" was originally published by MarketBeat. View MarketBeat's top stocks for August 2026.

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-11

Firefly Aerospace Announces Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results With Record Revenue Of $117.7 Million, Up 659% Year-Over-Year

GlobeNewswire
Won multiple contracts to support NASA's Moon Base program and acquired Space-ng to fuel autonomous space operations, while adding more national security wins and maturing our launch vehicle programs Launch and spacecraft vehicles in assembly at the Rocket Ranch, which supports ramped up capacity of carbon composite tanks and structures. CEDAR PARK, Texas, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY), a market leading space and defense technology company, today issued financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026. "Breaking the $100 million mark with another quarterly revenue record demonstrates Firefly's amplified growth. With more than a half dozen contract wins during the second quarter, we are matching execution to rocket, spacecraft, and software orders across our programs," said Jason Kim, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. "Firefly is leading the way in unlocking the lunar opportunity, with another two Moon missions added to our manifest during the second quarter," added Kim. "We're also going beyond the Moon to Mars as we support the cutting-edge SkyFall mission for NASA. Our recent campus expansion allows us to meet the growing demand behind both Blue Ghost and Elytra for exploration and national security missions, while also meeting the growing demand for orbital launch vehicles." Second Quarter 2026 Highlights Record revenue of $117.7 million, up 45.5% from the prior quarter. Awarded a $144 million NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contract for a rapid Blue Ghost lander mission to the Moon, Firefly's sixth contracted lunar mission to date. Acquired Space-ng, a leader in AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems, bringing proven spacecraft software and camera hardware for Firefly’s Blue Ghost landers and Elytra orbital vehicles, which bolsters Firefly’s capabilities to advance the future of autonomous space operations for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Awarded an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) contract for SciTec to support development of the Advanced Algorithm R&D and Verification Architecture by implementing deep learning and advanced algorithms on small Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) processors to support enhanced target detection, tracking, and custody. Announced collaboration with NVIDIA to enable rapid on-orbit processing in lunar orbit for Firefly’s Ocula Moon imaging se…Read full document

Won multiple contracts to support NASA's Moon Base program and acquired Space-ng to fuel autonomous space operations, while adding more national security wins and maturing our launch vehicle programs Launch and spacecraft vehicles in assembly at the Rocket Ranch, which supports ramped up capacity of carbon composite tanks and structures. CEDAR PARK, Texas, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY), a market leading space and defense technology company, today issued financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026. "Breaking the $100 million mark with another quarterly revenue record demonstrates Firefly's amplified growth. With more than a half dozen contract wins during the second quarter, we are matching execution to rocket, spacecraft, and software orders across our programs," said Jason Kim, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. "Firefly is leading the way in unlocking the lunar opportunity, with another two Moon missions added to our manifest during the second quarter," added Kim. "We're also going beyond the Moon to Mars as we support the cutting-edge SkyFall mission for NASA. Our recent campus expansion allows us to meet the growing demand behind both Blue Ghost and Elytra for exploration and national security missions, while also meeting the growing demand for orbital launch vehicles." Second Quarter 2026 Highlights Record revenue of $117.7 million, up 45.5% from the prior quarter. Awarded a $144 million NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contract for a rapid Blue Ghost lander mission to the Moon, Firefly's sixth contracted lunar mission to date. Acquired Space-ng, a leader in AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems, bringing proven spacecraft software and camera hardware for Firefly’s Blue Ghost landers and Elytra orbital vehicles, which bolsters Firefly’s capabilities to advance the future of autonomous space operations for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Awarded an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) contract for SciTec to support development of the Advanced Algorithm R&D and Verification Architecture by implementing deep learning and advanced algorithms on small Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) processors to support enhanced target detection, tracking, and custody. Announced collaboration with NVIDIA to enable rapid on-orbit processing in lunar orbit for Firefly’s Ocula Moon imaging service, utilizing an NVIDIA Jetson module combined with Firefly’s AI software on Elytra to rapidly process data on-orbit. Awarded a $75 million subcontract from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to support NASA's MoonFall mission, utilizing an Elytra spacecraft to deliver four drones to the Moon’s south pole that's targeted to launch no earlier than 2028 in support of NASA's Moon Base initiative. Completed the Critical Design Review for Blue Ghost's Gruithuisen Domes mission, progressing development of the spacecraft. Completed the Preliminary Design Review for Blue Ghost's South Pole mission, verifying the vehicle's design before production begins. Awarded U.S. Air Force contract option worth $5.5 million for SciTec to deliver the operational data fusion system for the Cloud-Based Command and Control (CBC2) program, having participated in a multi-year competition wherein SciTec’s data fusion system was evaluated and selected from among multiple industry and government-owned alternatives. Completed critical milestones toward Alpha launching from Sweden's Esrange Space Center, including building initial infrastructure, establishing transatlantic regulatory frameworks, and securing an agreement with the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration. Signed agreement with Seagate Space to collaborate on the development of an offshore launch platform that enables responsive sea-based Alpha launches. Completed underwritten public offering of common stock generating net proceeds of $181.6 million, to use for expanding core business growth and execution of recently awarded contracts. Expanded campus with a new headquarters, more than quadrupled spacecraft cleanroom space, added a wing of on-site workstations to support Alpha and Eclipse manufacturing, and established a new Gloworks innovation lab to support accelerated spacecraft production and rapid research and development. Additional Recent Highlights Awarded Firefly's first Mars mission, with a $13 million subcontract to support the SkyFall mission for NASA JPL, to manufacture, test, and deliver the aeroshell for launch in late 2028, developed by Firefly's Gloworks innovation lab. Awarded a $94 million Space Force contract under the Ground-Based Radar Digitization program, to support work overhauling legacy defense systems. Signed an extension to Lockheed Martin's multi-launch agreement for Alpha flights for up to 25 launches through 2031 using the Block II configuration. Crossed 150 hot fire tests to date of Eclipse's Miranda engine, including a flight-like Mission Duty Cycle test that fired for 226 seconds while completing power ratio and mixture ratio sweeps. Awarded a second hypersonic task order for Alpha from a confidential customer. Onboarded to the $981 million Space Force IDIQ contract for NITE-STAR – the National Space Test and Training Complex Innovative Technology and Engineering - Space Test and Range Capability Development, to compete for task orders to support advanced test and training operations through 2032. 2026 Full-Year Guidance Firefly expects 2026 full-year revenue to be between $420 million and $450 million. Conference Call Firefly will host a conference call today at 4:00 p.m. CT (5:00 p.m. ET) to discuss its second quarter 2026 financial results. The live webcast and accompanying presentation, as well as a replay of the webcast, will be available on Firefly’s Investor Relations website: investors.fireflyspace.com. About Firefly Aerospace Firefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company that enables government and commercial customers to launch, land, and operate in space – anywhere, anytime. As the partner of choice for responsive space missions, Firefly is the first commercial company to launch a satellite to orbit with approximately 24-hour notice. Firefly is also the only company to achieve a fully successful landing on the Moon. Established in 2017, Firefly’s engineering, manufacturing, and test facilities are co-located in central Texas to enable rapid innovation. The company’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles are built with common flight-proven technologies to enable speed, reliability, and cost efficiencies for each mission from low Earth orbit to the Moon and beyond. For more information, visit www.fireflyspace.com. Firefly utilizes its website as a means to distribute material information about the company to the public. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements (including within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended) concerning Firefly. Statements included in this press release that are not statements of historical fact, including statements about our expectations, beliefs, plans, strategies, objectives, prospects, assumptions or future events or performance, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "advance," “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “objective,” “ongoing,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “should,” "target," “will,” “would,” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. In particular, our outlook and revenue forecasts for full-year 2026, statements about our programs and innovation, our ability or expectations regarding our partnerships, collaborations and contract wins, our expectations regarding new vehicle launches and launch timelines, and our ability to retain existing customers and maintain their bookings are forward-looking statements. Various risks that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed by the forward-looking statements included in this press release include, but are not limited to our failure to manage our growth effectively and our ability to achieve and maintain profitability; the potential for delayed or failed launches, and any failure of our launch vehicles and spacecraft to operate as intended; our inability to manufacture our launch vehicles, landers, or orbital vehicles at a quantity and quality that our customers demand; the hazards and operational risks that our products and service offerings are exposed to, including the wide and unique range of risks due to the unpredictability of space; the market for commercial launch services for small- and medium-sized payloads not achieving the growth potential we expect; adverse impacts from current or future disruptions in U.S. government operations, including as a result of delays or reduction in appropriations or regulatory approvals from our programs, or changes in U.S. government funding and budgetary priorities and spending levels; our dependence on contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business and our dependence on major customers and vendors; a loss of, or default by, one or more of our major customers, or a material adverse change in any such customer’s business or financial condition, could materially reduce our revenues and backlog; uncertain global macro-economic and political conditions, including the implementation of tariffs; the failure of our information technology systems, physical or electronic security protections; the inability to operate Alpha at our anticipated launch rate (including due to potential regulatory delays) or finalize the development and delivery of Eclipse; our failure to establish and maintain important relationships with government agencies and prime contractors; the inability to realize our backlog; evolving government laws and regulations; our ability to consummate future acquisitions and successfully integrate operations in such acquisitions; our ability to implement and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future; and the factors, risks and uncertainties included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date stated, or if no date is stated, as of the date of this press release. Actual results may vary from the estimates provided. We undertake no intent or obligation to publicly update or revise any of the estimates and other forward-looking statements made in this announcement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures Adjusted EBITDA, Free Cash Flow, Non-GAAP Research and Development, Non-GAAP Selling, General, and Administrative, Non-GAAP Operating Expenses, Non-GAAP Loss from Operations, Non-GAAP Other Income (Expense), Non-GAAP Net Loss, and Non-GAAP Net Loss Per Share are non-GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as a substitute for, or superior to, measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. A reconciliation of each non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable financial measure prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP is included in the supplemental financial data attached to this press release. Non-GAAP financial measures have important limitations as analytical tools and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analyses of Firefly’s performance or cash flows as reported under U.S. GAAP. Non-GAAP financial measures may be defined differently by other companies in our industry and may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, thereby diminishing their utility. Firefly believes non-GAAP financial information provides additional insight into the Company’s ongoing performance and liquidity. Therefore, Firefly provides this information to investors for a more consistent basis of comparison and to help them evaluate the Company’s ongoing performance and liquidity and to enable more meaningful period-to-period comparisons. Adjusted EBITDA We define Adjusted EBITDA as net loss, adjusted for (benefit) provision for income taxes, interest income, interest expense, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation expense, change in fair value of warrant liability, certain one-time costs related to the IPO, transaction-related expenses, gain on settlement of contingent liabilities, and certain other items that are not expected to recur in the future or that management does not view as reflective of the performance of the business. In addition to net loss, we use Adjusted EBITDA to evaluate our business, measure its performance, and make strategic decisions. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA provides useful information to management, investors, and analysts in assessing our financial performance and results of operations across reporting periods by excluding items we do not believe are indicative of our core operating performance. Net loss is the U.S. GAAP measure most directly comparable to Adjusted EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as an alternative to net loss. Our presentation of Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or non-recurring items. Free Cash Flow We define Free Cash Flow as net cash used in operating activities, adjusted for purchases of property and equipment and internal-use software. We believe that Free Cash Flow is a meaningful indicator of liquidity that provides information to management and investors about the amount of cash generated from or used in operations, after purchases of property and internal-use software, that (after any debt service requirements or other non-discretionary expenditures not otherwise deducted from the measure) can be used for strategic initiatives, including continuous investment in our business and strengthening our balance sheet. Free Cash Flow has limitations as a liquidity measure, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our cash flows as reported under U.S. GAAP. Free Cash Flow may be affected in the near to medium term by the timing of capital investments, fluctuations in our growth and the effect of such fluctuations on working capital, and our changes in our cash conversion cycle. Non-GAAP Research and Development We define Non-GAAP Research and Development as research and development, adjusted for stock-based compensation expense. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Non-GAAP Selling, General, and Administrative We define Non-GAAP Selling, General and Administrative as selling, general and administrative, adjusted for amortization of acquired intangibles, stock-based compensation expense, certain one-time costs related to the IPO, and transaction-related expenses. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Non-GAAP Operating Expenses We define Non-GAAP Operating Expenses as operating expenses, adjusted for amortization of acquired intangibles, stock-based compensation expense, certain one-time costs related to the IPO, and transaction-related expenses. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Non-GAAP Loss From Operations We define Non-GAAP Loss From Operations as loss from operations, adjusted for amortization of acquired intangibles, stock-based compensation expense, certain one-time costs related to the IPO, and transaction-related expenses. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Non-GAAP Other Income (Expense) We define Non-GAAP Other Income (Expense) as other income (expense), adjusted for change in fair value of warrant liability, gain on settlement of contingent liabilities, and certain other items that are not expected to recur in the future or that management does not view as reflective of the performance of the business. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Non-GAAP Net Loss We define Non-GAAP Net Loss as net loss, adjusted for the income tax effect of business acquisitions, amortization of acquired intangibles, stock-based compensation, change in fair value of warrant liability, certain one-time costs related to the IPO, transaction-related expenses, gain on settlement of contingent liabilities, and certain other items that are not expected to recur in the future or that management does not view as reflective of the performance of the business. Management believes this non-GAAP measure provides investors with meaningful insight into results from ongoing operations by excluding items of income or loss to present it in accordance with how management manages the business. Contacts Media [email protected] Investor [email protected] CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF NET LOSS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS(unaudited; in thousands, except per share amounts) CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS(unaudited; in thousands, except per share amounts) CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS(unaudited; in thousands) RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES(unaudited; in thousands) The following tables present reconciliations of Adjusted EBITDA, Free Cash Flow, Non-GAAP Research and Development, Non-GAAP Selling, General, and Administrative, Non-GAAP Operating Expenses, Non-GAAP Other Income (Expense), Non-GAAP Net Loss, and Non-GAAP Net Loss Per Share to their most directly comparable financial measures presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP: (1) Represents costs incurred related to the IPO that do not meet the direct and incremental criteria per SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 5.A that were netted against the gross proceeds of the IPO and are not expected to recur in the future. (2) Other includes loss on foreign exchange. (1) Represents costs incurred related to the IPO that do not meet the direct and incremental criteria per SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 5.A that were netted against the gross proceeds of the IPO and are not expected to recur in the future. (2) Other includes loss on foreign exchange. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/10346240-51ba-4870-bcfb-a3be90a22d55

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-11

Firefly Aerospace: Q2 Earnings Snapshot

Associated Press

LEANDER, Texas (AP) — LEANDER, Texas (AP) — Firefly Aerospace Inc. (FLY) on Tuesday reported a loss of $92.3 million in its second quarter. On a per-share basis, the Leander, Texas-based company said it had a loss of 57 cents. Losses, adjusted for non-recurring costs, were 42 cents per share. The results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 50 cents per share. The space and defense technology company posted revenue of $117.7 million in the period, also beating Street forecasts. Six analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $89.6 million. Firefly Aerospace expects full-year revenue in the range of $420 million to $450 million. _____ This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on FLY at https://www.zacks.com/ap/FLY

TranscriptFY2026 Q22026-08-11

FY2026 Q2 earnings call transcript

Earnings source - 120 paragraphs
Operator

Please note, this conference call is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Michael Sheetz, Firefly's Director of Investor Relations. Michael, you may begin.

Michael Sheetz

Thank you, Carmen. Hello there. I'm Michael Sheetz, and welcome to Firefly's second quarter financial results call. I'm pleased to be joined on the call by CEO Jason Kim and CFO Darren Ma as we report for the period ending June 30, 2026. Today's call will include forward-looking statements, including but not limited to statements the company will make about its future financial and operating performance, growth strategy, and market outlook. Actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results and trends to differ materially are set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. Firefly assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements which speak only as of their respective dates. Also in this call, we will discuss both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures.

Michael Sheetz

A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures is included in the second quarter 2026 earnings release. Unless otherwise stated, financial information referenced in this call will be non-GAAP. Our earnings press release, SEC filings, and a replay of today's call can be found on our investor relations website at investors.fireflyspace.com. Now, I'll turn the call over to Jason.

Jason Kim

Thank you, Michael, and welcome to our second quarter 2026 earnings call. Firefly's first quarter surpassing $100 million comes in just our ninth year as a business, pairing record-breaking revenue with our history-making programs. Halfway through the year, the momentum we started with is building across our entire company, bolstered by multiple flagship contract wins and operational milestones achieved on our revenue-generating Blue Ghost, Elytra, Alpha, Eclipse, FORGE, and Golden Dome programs, as well as the recent acquisition of Space-ng. Our second quarter contract wins drove our backlog to a record total of $1.5 billion, further supporting our long-term growth trajectory. Our strategic investments to increase spacecraft production capacity are timely given the latest round of NASA moon-based contract awards for both Blue Ghost and Elytra.

Jason Kim

To showcase our expanded 144,000 sq ft spacecraft campus, my team and I hosted NASA's Moon Base lead, Carlos García-Galán, for a tour of landers, transfer vehicles, vertically integrated manufacturing, and our mission operations center. After seeing our end-to-end capabilities, Carlos shared that our recent MoonFall program award is not only important for space exploration, it is also important for national security as future missions could collaborate with the Space Force. Our capabilities are inherently dual use, such as our Ocula imaging and mapping service, so we embrace this call to action. We will continue to find ways to synergize between NASA and the Space Force to force multiply their investments toward a common strategic goal of securing the ultimate high ground.

Jason Kim

As demonstrated by our recent track record of landing and surface operations as well as contract awards, the spacecraft we are building will deliver and support many of the capabilities needed to enable a permanent presence on the Moon. Our lunar contracts constitute a revenue-generating flywheel with NASA as the base customer and additional bolt-on contracts from a diverse set of commercial and international customers. Additionally, space is a national security priority, as shown by significant year-over-year increases in the U.S. Space Force budget, major conflicts around the world, and evolving missile threats. Market signals from customers point to orbital launch only getting more supply-constrained. Demand for government and commercial constellations and missions outstrips the rocket capacity available both in the U.S. and globally. Moon Base, national security, Golden Dome, and assured access to launch are driving significant industry tailwinds for space.

Jason Kim

Firefly is addressing those pressing needs with the advancement of our technology, scaling of our product lines, and development and training of our workforce. Space is accelerating, and Firefly is accelerating with it. For those new to Firefly, and as a reminder for others, we are a space and defense company delivering innovative hardware and software to perform the hardest missions in space for national security, exploration, and commercial technology. Our hardware is represented by our spacecraft, the Blue Ghost lunar landers and Elytra satellite orbiters, and our launch vehicles, the small lift Alpha and medium lift Eclipse. Our spacecraft solutions platform also includes our software portfolio of AI-enabled operators, which are proven in national security operations, as well as autonomous guidance navigation systems.

Jason Kim

The industry tailwinds behind artificial intelligence, data centers, and autonomy are fueling operational realities for our company as we deliver crucial no-fail systems in support of the U.S. and our allies. We have co-located vertically integrated infrastructure within a 25-mile radius near Austin, Texas. This is where we develop and build our own carbon composite structures, in-house patented engine technology, and software autonomy for all of our products. We are obsessively focused on prioritizing safety, quality, and reliability as we scale up our hardware and software product deliveries for our national security, space exploration, and commercial customers. Now turning to our business updates. In the second quarter, we completed new milestones across each of our product lines and services while also engaging with our top customers.

Jason Kim

As the leading lunar company, we are proud to have won our fifth and sixth moon mission contracts during the second quarter, adding two more missions for delivery in 2028. During the second quarter, NASA awarded us with another Commercial Lunar Payload Services contract for an accelerated Blue Ghost lander mission to the Moon. The primary goal of this mission is to demonstrate repeatable access to the lunar surface on an accelerated timeline, executing the mission half the time of our first landing. This increases our target from one annual lunar landing to multiple per year. NASA's contract represents a near build-to-print lander design to enable faster production cycles and template our successful Blue Ghost into a production line vehicle. For our next lunar mission that is landing on the far side of the Moon, we completed assembly of the Blue Ghost lander's main structural and fluid components.

Jason Kim

We are now integrating the avionics and payloads as we prepare to stack the lander on top of our Elytra spacecraft. All of our primary structures have passed acceptance testing for our far side mission, while our flight proven Spectre engines are undergoing acceptance testing and preparation for integration. All the mission payloads have been delivered as well. We are currently anticipating Riders 2 the Dark will launch early next year, pending delivery of our spacecraft to Florida and confirmation of a launch window. Similar to our first mission, we will have one-week windows each month to ensure we arrive at the surface for the beginning of lunar day. Riders 2 the Dark will showcase one of the most complex multi-stage missions to the Moon to date.

Jason Kim

The full spacecraft stack is 22 ft tall, consisting of our lander on top, the European Space Agency Lunar Pathfinder satellite in the middle, and our Elytra spacecraft at the bottom. Elytra will serve as a long-haul communications relay orbiter and host our commercial Ocula imaging and mapping service. We are proud to support both commercial and international payloads. Our far side mission carries payloads representing the U.S., Australia, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. Additionally, we acquired Space-ng, a leader in AI-powered vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems, further adding to Firefly's vertical integration. They bring proven spacecraft software and camera hardware for Blue Ghost and Elytra, bolstering our capabilities to advance the future of autonomous space operations. Firefly is partnering with Benchmark Space Systems on their recent selection for the DARPA LASSO program.

Jason Kim

We will help the mission operate safely and persistently in very low lunar orbit, utilizing our newly acquired Space-ng team and their vision navigation hardware and software. The software from our new acquisition was proven on Blue Ghost Mission 1, when it performed autonomous hazard avoidance and navigation in the last hour to ensure we safely and softly landed on the Moon's surface. Work on Blue Ghost Mission 2 to the Gruithuisen Domes is well underway as the team completed the critical design review with our customer during the second quarter. This milestone progressed development of the spacecraft as we march towards this historic mission to the silica-rich volcanic features of the Moon, where humanity has never explored. Our rover subcontractor, Blue Origin, recently passed its critical design review, unlocking the flight build toward delivery to Firefly.

Jason Kim

Likewise, on Blue Ghost South Pole mission, we completed the preliminary design review to verify the vehicle's design before production begins. We continue to expand our spacecraft capabilities, both in infrastructure and technologies. During the second quarter, we expanded our Cedar Park campus, adding a new headquarters that is closer to our spacecraft facilities. We are more than quadrupling our spacecraft clean room space, thanks to our grant from the Texas Space Commission. We added our Gloworks Innovation Lab to support accelerated research and development without any disruption to our mature production lines. We are also looking ahead toward larger lander designs, which are maturing. We have submitted our proposal for the $6 billion CLPS 2.0 program and look forward to competing for opportunities to support the increased payload mass and volume needed to build moon-based infrastructure.

Jason Kim

Moving to Elytra, in the second quarter, Firefly won a new flagship role, MoonFall. We are proud to support this high-priority mission for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory under a $75 million subcontract for Elytra to deliver flying JPL drones to the Moon's South Pole in 2028. We have a robust working relationship with JPL from our Blue Ghost missions and are eager to collaborate further as we dare mighty things together. There is key national security interest in Elytra as well. Building upon the way we are using Elytra to carry our landers and support MoonFall, the Space Force has come out with a pressing request for information about fast transfer vehicles. These spacecraft could take critical national security small satellite payloads from GTO to GEO on diverse launch vehicles on a recurring basis. Elytra is uniquely suited to service this type of upside opportunity.

Jason Kim

In today's launch-constrained reality, transfer vehicles become a relief valve for critical customers who are more schedule sensitive and just need a way to get to their mission-unique destination from any available medium to heavy launch vehicle. The Elytra we are building for the Defense Innovation Unit's Project Sinequone is making progress toward launching next year. During the second quarter, we completed the integrated readiness review, which ensures that the spacecraft segment, components, and subsystems are available and ready to be integrated into the system. Since the end of the quarter, we also won a new spacecraft subcontract to support NASA's SkyFall mission to Mars. Through JPL, this $13 million award will see us manufacture, test, and deliver the mission's aeroshell for launch in late 2028. This is a strategic win for Firefly as it is the first time our core capability for the Moon will extend to Mars.

Jason Kim

This is another statement mission for JPL, as SkyFall is a high visibility program that will deploy a cluster of helicopter drones to the Mars surface. We have many upcoming shots on goal to support consequential moon base, national security, and space exploration missions with our landers and orbiters. Our SciTec National Security AI team added multiple wins as well. In the second quarter, we were awarded a U.S. Air Force contract option to deliver the operational data fusion system for the cloud-based command and control program. This came after a multi-year competition wherein our data fusion system was evaluated and selected from among high-profile industry and government-owned alternatives. This program is a centerpiece to the Department of Air Force's Advanced Battle Management System. Also in the second quarter, the Air Force Research Laboratory awarded us a contract to support development of the advanced algorithm R&D and verification architecture.

Jason Kim

We will be supporting AFRL by implementing deep learning and advanced AI algorithms on small size, weight, and power processors. This capability supports enhanced target detection, tracking, and custody, and is conducive to future on-orbit processing missions across multiple domains. It is also worth emphasizing again that Firefly was announced as a prime contractor for the Golden Dome program early in the second quarter. As a prime contractor on Golden Dome, we have a decisive seat at the table with the customer to listen to their needs and drive rapid solutions. It is no surprise to us that our AI capabilities are well-positioned due to our battle-tested, operational FORGE program. We are processing high volumes of missile warning and tracking satellite data at rapid data rates to help inform our guardians of threats simultaneously to keep our nation and allies safe.

Jason Kim

In the first half of the year, I spoke to senior Pentagon generals and congressional leaders. There is unanimous support and advocacy for how critical FORGE is to the nation to keep ahead of advanced missile threats. FORGE recently achieved another operational milestone by integrating the GEO Wide Field of View spacecraft into the platform. FORGE continues to support conflicts around the world and recently received a superior performance rating from the Department of Defense for supporting operations in the Iran conflict. A few weeks ago, Firefly SciTec won a $94 million Space Force contract under the ground-based radar digitization effort. The GBARD program of record is a critical overhaul of legacy missile defense systems. We took the FORGE playbook in missile warning and tracking and applied it to the GBARD competition to secure the strategic win, and now we are in execution.

Jason Kim

Nearly a year since our acquisition, this one represents the synergy of Firefly and SciTec in a one plus one equals four moment as our combined platform helps unlock capability. Shifting to launch, we are driving forward to launch our first Block 2 Alpha with Flight 8 now targeting the fourth quarter of the year. We are preparing for acceptance testing of Alpha in the next few weeks, followed by delivery to Vandenberg, static fire, payload integration, and then launch. As with any flight, we will disclose more specific timing as we get closer to launch. Launch timing is always dependent on variable factors such as customer readiness, regulatory approval, range availability, weather conditions, and other factors that are not within our control. We also will conduct a thorough review of our post-Flight 8 data to ensure any lessons learned flow into subsequent launches.

Jason Kim

We are targeting to launch Alpha two additional times this year, Flight 8 and 9, for a total of three launches in 2026. Flights 10 and 11 are already flowing through our production line as we build ahead for next year. Our demand remains strong, having sold the majority of Alpha's manifest through 2027. We have visibility into out years as well, in part thanks to the extension of our Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement. Additionally, we added a second hypersonic task order for Alpha from a confidential customer. During the second quarter, I visited Sweden's Esrange Space Center and met with our partner SSC Space. With our support, they have completed critical milestones to get the pad ready, including the payload processing facility, horizontal integration building, ground support equipment buildings, and a launch control center.

Jason Kim

Final construction of Launch Complex 3C is underway, and our first launch from Sweden is targeted for no earlier than 2028. We also recently hosted SPACE COTAN, our partners from Japan, who are eager to replicate Sweden's blueprint on their side of the Pacific. At the Farnborough Airshow in the U.K., we met with new and existing customers who are keen to fly on Alpha from our current and future launch sites. These launch site expansions increase our cadence capacity beyond our operational Vandenberg Space Force Base launch pad. As we go global, our increased production rate supports Alpha's underlying growth strategy. We are making progress on rating up Alpha production while keeping safety, quality, and reliability top of mind. We have taken new steps to increase Alpha production, and between May and August, we significantly increased overall production throughput.

Jason Kim

For a few examples, our new Alpha mandrel tooling drove improvements in structure production time, allowing our automated fiber placement machine to decrease runtime and enhance quality while manufacturing multiple vehicle structures simultaneously. We are increasing Reaver chamber throughput via more efficient machine labor and equipment utilization, leading to Reaver engine integration at higher rates. Our Cortex engineering facility, which opened in spring, added 55,000 sq ft for subsystems production. This has already driven improvements in the pace of making harnessing, batteries, and avionics that are used across our vehicles. Moving to Eclipse, we are focused on delivering the vehicle's first stage to our co-developer, Northrop Grumman, progressing through milestones for building and testing Eclipse. We are maturing Eclipse toward first flight. Our thunderous Miranda engine, designed for reusability, crossed 150 hot fire tests to date as the campaign crosses key milestones at pace.

Jason Kim

A big recent unlock was the flight-like mission duty cycle test that the team completed with the engine firing for 226 seconds, all while completing both power ratio and mixture ratio sweeps. Our Miranda engine qualification test campaign is imminent, as our recent tests demonstrated the performance needed to meet the range of stress requirements during a launch. We are building ahead with flight Miranda engine chambers in production. The team also completed our burst press qualification campaign of first stage COPVs, and the first flight's forward bay is built in completed testing with our first stage test campaign now underway. The engine bay structure, which mounts the seven Miranda engines for each Eclipse first stage, is in assembly and bonding as we prepare for integration. Finally, the metal hold-down release adapter is in build, which is a key piece of ground infrastructure that we are preparing for proof testing.

Jason Kim

We invested in a new on-site mezzanine at our Rocket Ranch with workstations that bring engineering and manufacturing teams to the factory floor, which you can see here is co-located with our production line. Firefly is addressing the most pressing demands from our diverse blue-chip customer base. Our team is focused on executing, improving our technologies, scaling our capacity to deliver our products, and strengthening our bold and passionate workforce. With that business summary, I will turn it over to Darren for a review of the second quarter financials.

Darren Ma

Thank you, Jason, and good afternoon, everyone. Today marks a defining moment for Firefly. We delivered record revenue, crossing the $100 million threshold for the first time, while simultaneously achieving the highest backlog in the company's history at $1.5 billion. These milestone results demonstrate the accelerating demand for end-to-end space and defense solutions and are a direct reflection of our team's execution. Second quarter revenue of $117.7 million represents 46% sequential growth and an impressive 659% increase year-over-year. This acceleration was driven by exceptional performance in our spacecraft solutions business, where for the first time in company history, our team is executing on five lunar missions in parallel. We are also experiencing similar momentum in our AI software solutions with a national security customer requesting acceleration of their hardware order by one quarter. Within total revenue, spacecraft accounted for $108.3 million, and launch was $9.4 million.

Darren Ma

For those new to Firefly, let me briefly explain our revenue recognition model, as it's critical to understanding our financial trajectory. The spacecraft solutions business generally recognizes revenue over time under each contract as we complete contract milestones. This provides a more predictable recurring revenue component alongside the more event-driven launch business. For the launch business, we focus on the number of launches. For example, revenue for Alpha is recognized at a point in time when the launch occurs. For Eclipse, we currently recognize revenue as a percentage of completion based on program milestones as part of the Northrop Grumman partnership. Once the Eclipse vehicle is operational, we will recognize revenue when launches occur in the same manner as Alpha. We closed the second quarter with a total backlog of approximately $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion last quarter.

Darren Ma

This represents significant growth when you consider that we converted existing backlog into $117.7 million in quarterly revenue. The contract awards this quarter were headlined by two additional NASA lunar missions and the Alpha multi-launch agreement extension from Lockheed Martin. Subsequently after Q2, we closed an additional hypersonic task order, won a NASA JPL mission to Mars, and onboarded to the Space Force's GBARD and NITE-STAR programs. Second quarter GAAP gross margin was 20.3%, compared with 21.6% in the prior quarter. The modest decline was driven primarily by FORGE hardware purchases to support a U.S. government program during heightened geopolitical conflicts, as mentioned previously in the revenue section. GAAP operating expenses for the second quarter were $119.1 million, compared with $113.1 million in the first quarter. Non-GAAP operating expenses for the second quarter were $94.3 million, compared with $93.7 million in the first quarter.

Darren Ma

The slight increase represents our continued R&D investments to support Alpha Block II production ramp and Eclipse development. As a reminder, the primary differences between the GAAP and non-GAAP figures are stock-based compensation expense, one-time transaction-related expenses, and the amortization of intangibles. GAAP operating loss was $95.2 million, compared with a loss of $95.7 million in last quarter. Non-GAAP operating loss was $70.4 million, compared with a loss of $76.2 million in the first quarter. GAAP net loss in the second quarter was $92.3 million, compared with the GAAP net loss of $96.7 million in the first quarter. Our non-GAAP net loss in the second quarter was $67.7 million. This compares with a non-GAAP net loss of $74 million in the prior quarter. GAAP basic and diluted net loss per share was $0.57, compared with a GAAP net loss of $0.61 last quarter.

Darren Ma

Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per share for the second quarter was $0.42, compared with a loss of $0.46 last quarter. The net loss per share figures were calculated using a weighted average share count of 161.8 million. We exited the second quarter with a share count of 166.2 million shares, which includes shares from our common stock offering completed in June. For purposes of calculating net loss per share in the third quarter, we expect weighted average share count to be approximately 167.2 million. This number will increase by about 1 million shares per quarter. Stock-based compensation expense was $17 million in the second quarter, compared with $12.5 million in the prior quarter. The increase was related to new stock-based awards that were granted during the period.

Darren Ma

Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter was a loss of $61.2 million, compared with a loss of $64.7 million in the first quarter. Our balance sheet remains a position of strength, ending the quarter with total liquidity of $940.3 million. This consists of $635.3 million in cash equivalents, and short-term investments, and $305 million of available capacity from our revolving credit facility, which remains undrawn. Our cash balance includes approximately $182.6 million in net proceeds from our June's common stock offering. The capital raise positions us with substantial financial flexibility to invest in growth initiatives and accompanied a controlled block sale by insider stockholders. Capital expenditures for the second quarter were $24.8 million, up from $16.3 million sequentially, reflecting investments that enhance production capacity to drive our growth.

Darren Ma

This includes test stand upgrades to support Alpha Block II and expansion of spacecraft manufacturing, which positions us to support NASA's accelerated lunar opportunities. Free cash flow was an outflow of $106.3 million, compared with an outflow of $78.9 million in the first quarter. The increase is primarily due to the final SciTec acquisition-related payment of approximately $24 million. We also closed the Space-ng acquisition, which brings proven AI vision navigation and autonomous guidance systems, critical enabling technology for our Blue Ghost landers and Elytra orbiters. This acquisition adds approximately 15 software engineers, and we view this as a strategic transaction that vertically integrates a key capability on a cost-neutral basis. Regarding our revenue outlook for 2026, we remain confident in our trajectory to achieve significant annual revenue growth this year and reiterate the range of $420 million-$450 million. The second quarter was an inflection point for Firefly.

Darren Ma

We crossed the $100 million revenue threshold for the first time in company history while also achieving record backlogs of $1.5 billion. With over $940 million in total liquidity and clear line of sight to our revenue guidance for 2026, we have both the financial flexibility and operational momentum to continue scaling. As production ramps and operational efficiency improves, we expect to see corresponding expansion in gross margins and operating leverage. We're building Firefly to be the definitive end-to-end space solutions provider, and the results you're seeing today are proof of that vision becoming reality. We remain intensely focused on disciplined execution and delivering long-term shareholder value. Thank you for your continued confidence in Firefly. With that, I'll turn the call back to Jason.

Jason Kim

Thank you, Darren. Our record quarterly revenue is a testament to the focused execution of the Firefly team. Our multiple contract wins show how the significant tailwinds from the efforts like the Moon Base, Golden Dome, and assured access to space are turning into realities for our programs. Firefly's strategic investments are paying dividends. SciTec is winning on more programs of record by leveraging our FORGE playbook repeatedly for additional phenomenologies and missions. Space-ng brings us greater vertical integration for more frequent, repeatable, and reliable spacecraft operations and landings. Expansion of our spacecraft campus and Rocket Ranch are fueling production efficiency and scaling of Alpha, Eclipse, Blue Ghost, and Elytra. We are expanding our global reach thanks to partners in the international markets such as Sweden and Japan, as the strong launch capacity demand extends beyond just domestically.

Jason Kim

The moon opportunity is accelerating, and we're eager to apply our Blue Ghost playbook to larger landers for CLPS 2.0 to serve NASA's need for greater mass and volume to the lunar surface. We've talked before about missions to orbit the moon and beyond. The beyond is here with our first Mars program, leveraging our moon capabilities and extending it. Space is critical, and Firefly is a critical player in space. Thank you for joining today's call. Michael, back to you.

Michael Sheetz

Thank you, Jason. We will be attending multiple investor events in September, and we look forward to seeing many of you next month. Operator, we're ready to take questions.

Operator

Thank you so much. As a reminder, to ask a question, simply press star one one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To remove yourself, press star one one again. One moment for our first question. It comes from Sheila Kahyaoglu with Jefferies. Please proceed.

Sheila Kahyaoglu

Good afternoon, Jason, Darren, Michael. Thank you so much for the time. Maybe I could just start off on launch. Two-part question, if that is possible. You put out a press release noting the Lockheed Martin extension for two years to 2031 plus the hypersonic task order. I guess how do we think about that? You noted Alpha 8 into Q4 from late summer and Alpha 10 to 2027. I guess how is Alpha shaping up, just given healthy demand in 2027 as well, and ability for launch. Thank you.

Jason Kim

Yes. Hi, Sheila. The demand for launch is increasingly getting amplified. This is the most constrained we have seen launch. There is strong demand that we see with Alpha. We saw it at the Space Symposium, we saw it at Farnborough at the U.K., as well as our BD team at SPACETIDE. There is a lot of strong demand from existing and new customers. That is referencing the Lockheed Martin extension. That is one of our existing customers. That just reaffirms Lockheed's confidence in our Block 2 Alpha. It also reaffirms the 2025 Alpha multi-launch service agreement. We continue to collaborate with Lockheed on our next flights. We are even talking about offshore launches with combination with Seagate Space and Lockheed Martin and Firefly to do more responsive launches. The confidential hypersonic task order too.

Jason Kim

That is another confidence builder in Alpha Block 2, because we can launch not only 1 ton to orbit, but 2 tons to suborbital. That makes Alpha very uniquely suited to launch multiple hypersonic missiles at a time. There is a lot of economies of scale with that. The second task order for the hypersonic missiles really helps burn down that rich backlog of hypersonic testing that is needed. We are seeing this with all the international customers we are talking to. We are seeing the strong demand also with commercial customers. We are really excited about the progress we are making in our factory. We are seeing record production from our factory. Carbon composites are providing tanks that are passing first-time quality. We have flight 8 that is in integration and test right now.

Jason Kim

We are getting ready for acceptance testing before we ship it to Vandenberg and then do the static fire testing, integrate the payload, and then get ready for launch. Flight 9 is entering the integration and test phase as well because we are so rich with carbon composite tanks. The machine shop is also flowing. We have a record number of Reaver chambers that are getting delivered to our Reaver engine integration and test. Thanks to a lot of the labor and equipment utilization that is more efficient. Since May through August, we have seen our factory floor ramp up significantly. We have got flight 10 tanks that are completing. Flight 11 tanks are starting to get through their automated fiber placement machine production as well. The factory is just flowing at record pace.

Jason Kim

Really, the demand is not the problem, the backlog is not the problem. It is really ramping up production so we can deliver the amount of Alpha rockets to meet the demand.

Sheila Kahyaoglu

Can I follow up with, I guess, is it just ability to produce or is it the customer on the 3 launches from 4 in 2026? How should we think about 2027? Is it still 12 launches?

Jason Kim

I have always mentioned that there is always risk with customer availability and regulatory approvals and range availability as well as weather. Those are things that we will still have to address, but are out of our control. So those factors are things that we have to address for our Flight 8 and Flight 9. But the production is just ramped up. We are going to have several Alphas in this year.

Jason Kim

We are building ahead, as I mentioned, and that is giving us a good position for 2027 and beyond. I mentioned before that a majority of our manifest for 2027 has already been sold out. That is another piece of data point that just shows the launch demand is amplified right now. We are getting a lot of demand for more and more Alpha launches because it is the 1 ton rocket with orbital flight heritage that is active.

Jason Kim

Another thing that helps us in 2027 is we are going to bring online, in addition to our operational Vandenberg launchpad, we are going to bring online the Wallops launchpad in Virginia as well. Then, as I mentioned before, in 2028, we will be able to bring on our SSC Space Sweden launchpad as well. So we will have two launchpads next year, three launchpads in 2028 to help with the launch cadence opportunities.

Sheila Kahyaoglu

Awesome. Thank you so much.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from Seth Seifman with JPMorgan. Please proceed.

Speaker 5

Yeah. Hey, guys. This is Alex on for Seth. Good afternoon.

Jason Kim

Hi, Alex.

Speaker 5

Hey. Maybe a question for Darren. Darren, I think in your prepared remarks, you mentioned how spacecraft revenue was $108 million in Q2. And if you look at the growth on a sequential basis, it was around 60%, which is obviously a pretty big number. Curious, I know you mentioned among the drivers that there is the five lunar missions you guys are working on, strength in AI software, and I think there is also an acceleration of a hardware order. I was curious if there is maybe a way that you could break that down a little bit more between those three pieces, just to give us a sense of what drove that revenue strength.

Darren Ma

Yeah. Hey, Alex. Good to hear from you. So there is definitely some puts and takes this quarter from a revenue mix and timing perspective, but the trajectory and the destination to the $420 million-$450 million in annual revenue remains the same. I mentioned the hardware order that impacted the timing into Q2. So that was an acceleration from a national security customer. And one of the strengths in this business is really the diversified revenue streams from multiple product lines, right? Look, there is really strong demand, as you can see, as evidenced on the spacecraft side, as the team is working through five lunar lander programs in parallel right now. We are seeing similar strength in the AI software solutions that it is really going to offset some of the revenue impact of launch, right?

Darren Ma

What gives us a lot of confidence heading into the second half of the year is that we have 95% of our revenue booked for 2026, if you take the midpoint of our guidance.

Speaker 5

Okay, great. And then, as a quick follow-up, Jason, I think you mentioned that you are maturing towards the first Eclipse flight. But I might have missed it, but did not hear an update on maybe updated expectations on when that may be. Just curious if there is any updated expectation there.

Jason Kim

Yeah, Alex. Again, I can't stress enough that the demand for launch capacity is amplified right now. We've never seen the launch capacity so constrained. That not only helps the demand for Alpha, but also for Eclipse. Right now we are heads down getting all the qualification completed for our Miranda engine. Qualification is imminent. We just surpassed our 150th hot fire test. What was very encouraging on this last hot fire was it was flight-like. It was 226 seconds, which surpassed the full mission duty cycle duration of 206 seconds. We got really great test results from that. That unlocks moving forward. We're also building the Miranda flight engines in parallel. So we're making progress there. We've got a number of chambers for the Miranda engines. The forward bay, as I mentioned, has been qualified and tested.

Jason Kim

Every hardware part of the first stage of Eclipse is either in build or in test. We've already qualified our tanks. We'll continue to qualify them. We've got flight tanks also in build as well. So all that hardware, we're very hardware-rich at this time. We're making sure that everything's done with safety, quality, and reliability at the forefront. The thing about this capability is it's going to unlock a lot of launch capacity in the future. We're working with Northrop Grumman on delivering the vehicle, the first stage, no earlier than next year. This is inaugural launch of no earlier than 2027. We did also complete COPVs in addition to the rocket engines, which are the hardest part of any rocket development. The COPVs are extremely challenging and difficult for the industry as well.

Jason Kim

We completed COPV burst press qualification campaign testing for the first stage. The hold down release adapter, that's where rubber meets the road. That holds down the rocket before it launches. That's a key piece of the ground infrastructure, and we're preparing to proof test that. So lots of exceptional progress. Really proud of the team for all the progress that we're making. The factory floor is just really hardware-rich at this moment.

Speaker 5

Awesome. Thanks very much, guys.

Operator

Thank you so much. Our next question comes from Edison Yu with Deutsche Bank. Please proceed.

Edison Yu

Hi. Thank you for taking our questions and great seeing everyone in Farnborough. First question, wanted to follow up on an earlier point. Let us assume the next launch 4Q goes well. Not asking for guidance for next year, but what kind of cadence are you kind of targeting if the next launch goes well? Can you speak to that at all? Is it like once a month, once a quarter, or twice a quarter? What kind of cadence?

Darren Ma

Yeah. Hey, good to hear from you, Edison. We have so much hardware on the floor. Production is at an all-time high. So that gives us really high confidence that we are going to continue to pump out Alphas at rate. As I mentioned, Alpha 8 is in final integration test before we ship it. Alpha 9 is entering right behind it in integration and test. Alpha 10, all the airframes are completed. Alpha 11, the airframes are progressing.

Darren Ma

So that gives us a head start on getting ready for rate next year. So that gives you an indication of what we are doing at this point. That kind of gives us a lot of optimism for next year. The other thing is we are not going to talk about guidance for 2027, but I mentioned the hardware production ramp. But the people part of it, our workforce successfully launched Flight-7.

Darren Ma

That was a lot of muscle memory and repetitions that they got from that, doing the static fire testing and then the launch itself, then doing the post-processing of the data. They are getting faster and faster at doing that using advanced tools that we have in-house. So the goal is to launch Flight-8 successfully, get all the post-flight data, process that as soon as possible, let that flow into Flight-9.

Darren Ma

Launch campaign and continue that momentum into 2027 and beyond.

Edison Yu

Got you. A separate topic. I want to ask you about the Moon, want to ask you about CLPS. Can you give us a sense of what you're expecting for the rest of the year in terms of NASA awarding out task orders? Are we done with CLPS 1.0 and kind of waiting for 2.0? Do we expect more from 1.0? Do we expect 2.0? Any just kind of a flavor of we should expect some stuff. We used to bid in and potentially win on some stuff before year-end.

Jason Kim

Yeah. We're never done with CLPS 1.0. There's three more opportunities in the second half of this year. We already won, as we mentioned before, the CS-8 opportunity, and we're on contract, and away we go because it's a near build to print of our successful Blue Ghost Mission 1. We also went further vertically integrated with Acquire Space-ng. So that is moving along. The opportunities ahead of us are two lander missions under CLPS 1.0, and then one orbiter imaging service under CLPS 1.0 as well. So there are multiple shots and opportunities at goal for the rest of the year.

Jason Kim

Because we invested in the CapEx to have quadruple the clean room space, put in the most optimized streamline assembly line that we could into that clean room, as well as expanded our spacecraft campus with vertically integrated components like avionics and harnessing in-house engines as well. That gives us a really good position and extra capacity to take on more. So we see the CS-8 win in second quarter as just the beginning. It did put us in a category of we won not only that, but also the JPL MoonFall mission. So that was two of the Moon missions this year. It expanded our number of Moon missions in 2028 to three. So that's a positive trend going from one mission a year to multiple missions a year.

Jason Kim

But that capacity in our hiring and staffing up is a good combination to go after more of these CLPS 1.0 missions. CLPS 2.0 is also happening. We did put a bid in for that, and we had designs that we were working on for that, and we hope to hear from NASA in the coming months. But we're really excited about taking our success from the Blue Ghost Mission 1 and subsequent missions and applying it and extending it to a larger lander to take even more mass, even more volume to the Moon so that we can be part of the infrastructure builds of the Moon base.

Edison Yu

Thank you very much.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Michael Leshock with KeyBanc Capital Markets. Please proceed.

Michael Leshock

Hey, good afternoon. On the guidance piece, what are the biggest swing factors that could cause revenue to shake out either at the high end or the low end of the guidance range? Given the unchanged range for the year, I think you were previously expecting four total Alpha launches in 2026, and now you're expecting three. So that would imply that you were able to reiterate guidance without the maybe $15 million or $20 million of revenue from that additional Alpha launch, assuming the ASP is a bit higher than these next ones for Flight 10. So ex-Alpha guidance would have increased. Is that the right way to think about it? And then, yeah, just maybe the swing factors for that range.

Darren Ma

Hey, Michael, good to hear from you. I think I touched on this a little bit earlier. When you look at where we are from a guidance perspective, we reiterated $420 million-$450 million. Some of the moving parts there, as I mentioned before, the trajectory of our growing revenue and the destination, which is between the $420 million-$450 million, where we're going to be. We're going to land there, and we have really strong confidence because the team's been executing. You can see the momentum in Q2, but also heading into the second half of the year, as I mentioned, 95% of that revenue was already booked. So it's just up to us in terms of execution. Where things can swing on the high end or low end, I mean, Jason Kim touched on it a little bit earlier.

Darren Ma

If we wind up winning one of these additional CLPS missions in the end of the year, it could push us towards the higher end of the range. Our business is really well diversified. There's multiple product lines that can generate revenue and continue to generate revenue. So you'll see that we're working on the FORGE program for AI software solutions, the five lunar missions, Golden Dome SVI, and we're really excited about some of the most recent wins in terms of GBARD and SkyFall. That allows us to kind of offset some of the impact of the Alpha launch.

Michael Leshock

Okay, great. On SciTec, maybe you could talk about what you saw there in the quarter and how revenue might be impacted from geopolitical tensions when there's a lot more activity. Do customers pay more? Is it a function of higher demand during more activity? Any color on the contract structure there and what was seen during the war?

Darren Ma

I think you're seeing strong demand on that side of the house, and you can see that we had a hardware order that got accelerated in Q2 and requested by our national security customer in terms of the

Darren Ma

Geopolitical tensions, that is really been an area where there is really a strong demand in that product line. Maybe I will let Jason comment on some of the geopolitical parts of it.

Jason Kim

Yeah, Michael, the conflicts have not gotten any better. We see a lot of the Iran conflict earlier in the year, and that continues. It is the most missile conflict that we have seen in the history. In the first 30 days, if you remember, FORGE, earlier this year, processed over thousands of threat messages. That was just in the first few weeks. The problem is continuing, and it is not just in one region, it is global as well. Missile threats are getting more advanced. Because of those reasons, we need more AI capability, more battle space awareness, more technical intelligence, more tactical missile warning, missile tracking, and strategic missile warning and tracking.

Jason Kim

Those are all things that the purpose of FORGE is to provide that kind of AI software support to the guardians and force multiply each one of them so that we can keep our nation safe and our allies safe. We only see more acceleration of those type of capabilities because of this threat emerging.

Michael Leshock

Thanks so much.

Operator

Thank you. One moment for our next question, that comes from Kristine Liwag with Morgan Stanley. Please proceed.

Kristine Liwag

Hey, good evening, everyone. Jason, Darren, Michael, you've clearly seen strong order of momentum across your portfolio. I was wondering, as you convert these new awards into revenue, can you help us understand the profitability and cash milestones associated with that backlog, especially for some of these capabilities where you've already proven the technology? How do these margins and cash flow typically evolve as these new orders convert into revenue?

Darren Ma

Yeah. Hey, Kristine, good to hear from you. Q2 is a great example, right? When you look at the $117 million in terms of revenue, we converted pretty much all of that was from backlog conversion, and we're in a contract. A lot of our contracts, primarily on the spacecraft side, are milestone driven. So we're getting cash, and that allows us to build out our teams and buy long-lead items to support the programs for our customers as we progress through each one. So we're able to really just. And on top of that, after we close some of these contracts, let's take the Blue Ghost orders from NASA, for example. These lunar admissions really have bolt-on opportunities, as Jason talked about.

Darren Ma

That allows us to expand gross margins, whether they're from commercial payloads or from imaging services like Ocula, which I would expect to be much higher gross margins. And from a gross margin perspective, as we unlock Alpha, as cadence increases, I would expect the corresponding increase in gross margin there. That's really the big unlock for gross margin going forward.

Kristine Liwag

Great. Super helpful. I guess, you kind of partially answered my follow-up question. I guess, can you level set us in terms of how do we think about the path to positive EBITDA as a whole for the company and free cash flow breakeven? I guess, specifically, is there some sort of level of revenue as you convert some of those specific milestones that you get to where either it is a mix, scale, fixed cost absorption, or more profitable contracts leveling through where you can actually get to that profitability and positive free cash?

Darren Ma

Yeah, really so much of our business is driven by these operational milestones. Our operational milestones really drive our financials. Things I look at as everyone else is looking is getting Alpha to rating cadence, right? Eclipse development, finishing off Eclipse development. That takes a lot off the R&D line. We are excited about the ramp of our spacecraft business. It is progressing really well. There is a really high demand there for that business, whether it is our Blue Ghost lander, electric vehicle, or on the AI software solution side, right? That positions us really well for profitability in the future.

Kristine Liwag

Great. Thank you very much.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from Colin Canfield with Cantor. Please proceed.

Colin Canfield

Hey, thanks for the question. Maybe following up on the supply-demand environment, if we could talk a little bit about Eclipse. How much the national security customer are talking about essentially kind of releasing some of the requirements on NSSL on-ramp, and how do you kind of think about Eclipse's prospects of getting early on-ramps to NSSL? Thank you.

Jason Kim

Yeah. Hey, Colin. Nice to hear from you. We're just heads down right now on our Eclipse program. We are going through qualification of Miranda and getting the test data to inform our flight builds as well. Same thing with the tanks, the LOX/RP-1 tanks, and getting to a point where we can deliver the first stage to our co-developer, Northrop Grumman. Northrop Grumman leads the government-facing work like NSSL. We're confident that our co-develop.

Jason Kim

Eclipse rocket is American-made. It meets the standards and needs of the U.S. Space Force, and it's an ideal solution to deploy a broad range of payloads with such critical payloads that the Space Force demands. We're just working towards our first launch, showing the capability. Because at the end of the day, what matters the most is delivering the payload to the mission orbit that we sign up for, and that's what we're focused on. As I said before, the demand for launch capacity is the most constrained we've seen it. There's strong demand both on the National Security Space Launch Program side as well as commercial and international. As long as we continue to just focus on our first launch and get that vital data and then continue on, that's where we're focusing.

Colin Canfield

Got it. Maybe on that same kind of topic, if you could discuss the pricing elements of the launch services agreement extension with Lockheed. Essentially, how do we think about that versus current list price, and how much of that pricing increase would you attribute to hypersonics mix or other international security factors, second stage relight on orbit maneuverability and the like? Thank you.

Darren Ma

Yeah. Hey, Colin. Good to hear from you. Alpha pricing, we would expect it. Jason talked about the launch constrained environment. We would expect our Alpha ASPs to go up over time. In the earlier years, in the next 6-12 months, we are burning down some of our earlier backlogs. So you will see some of those lower ASP missions burn off. But I would expect our prices to go up in a launch constrained environment.

Operator

One moment for our next question. It comes from Griffin Boss with B. Riley Securities. Please proceed.

Griffin Boss

Hi. Good afternoon. Thanks for taking my questions. First for me, wanted to jump back to the CLPS opportunity. You mentioned that you submitted a proposal for a larger lander variant of the Blue Ghost. Curious if we can hear any more details on that. Are we talking 500-kg payload capacity a ton? Is there any more color you can provide there?

Jason Kim

Hey, Griffin. The thing I could say right now, because we cannot release any proprietary information, but what the NASA Moon Base program announced in March as part of their ignition program was they wanted 30 landers in the next three years, and the first 15 were going to be nominal landers. That is anywhere between the hundreds of kilograms to the surface of the Moon. But they also wanted an additional 12 landers that around the 2-4 ton kind of capability and then another 13 landers for the 8 ton kind of down mass. So we have a scalable design that is modular, that we can take different cargo to support human presence in the future. You are going to need power, you are going to need navigation and guidance, communications, cargo to sustain life, rovers, light terrain vehicles, all of the above.

Jason Kim

We have a design that takes a lot of the common components that we successfully landed on the Moon already with, but scales it in terms of size, volume, and mass, so we can take those Moon Base infrastructure cargo reliably. We are talking the multi-ton kind of capability.

Griffin Boss

Super helpful. Thanks, Jason. Just one more, if I could. I was hoping we could touch back on tactically responsive space and specifically where your work with True Anomaly stands. I believe, or at least it was our understanding that Firefly was originally supposed to launch that Victus Haze mission. But, of course, as we saw, Rocket Lab handle that launch. So curious if you could just give an update there, specifically with your work, with True Anomaly.

Jason Kim

Yeah, we are very bullish on tactically responsive space. If you look at the Space Force budget, it could double from 2026 to 2027 numbers. With that, the tactically responsive space line could quadruple. That is how important and critical this is. We are not just doing demonstration missions. In the future, we will do operational missions. Because this capability is really to meet the needs of urgent and priority missions for the Space Force. It is also to deter U.S. adversaries in space. We are delighted that there is multiple providers of this capability in addition to us. We were the first to do it within a 24-hour timeline, but there is going to be more and more. That is something we have always envisioned along with the Space Force.

Jason Kim

The Space Force, at their direction of the Space Safari, moved our future tactically responsive space mission that will utilize now our upgraded Alpha Block II launch vehicle to launch True Anomaly's Jackal in the future. This new mission will build on the lessons learned with VICTUS NOX, and we also did Victus DM earlier this year. Now, the lessons learned from the successful Victus Haze and others that we'll foresee in the future to shape the next generation of tactically responsive space missions.

Griffin Boss

Okay. If I am still on here, I just want to clarify what you said. Does that mean your, there is no change in your responsive space pipeline, just that that mission had it. It went to Rocket Lab, but maybe you have another mission lined up in the future then that mission is not lost, it is just saved for a later date. Is that the right way to think about it?

Jason Kim

That is the right way to think about it, saved for a later date per the Space Force direction.

Griffin Boss

Okay. All right, great. Thank you for taking my questions. I appreciate it.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from David Strauss with Wells Fargo. Please proceed.

Ben Tomick

Hey, this is Ben Tomick going for David. Going back to the CLPS missions. With all the awards you have now and more awards to come, how should we think about these accelerated Blue Ghost cadences impact on Blue Ghost margins? Is there a certain rate that we really see an inflection with margins there?

Darren Ma

Yeah, I'll take that one. So obviously with more Blue Ghost and spacecraft missions, that kind of spreads out that fixed manufacturing overhead we have in the business. So we'd expect our gross margins to continue to expand. On top of that, you're looking at, in addition to the base contract that we've won from NASA, there's opportunity for commercial providers for additional payloads from commercial providers. Then I talk about the Ocula imaging service as well, right? So those can provide gross margin expansion opportunities.

Ben Tomick

Got it. Thanks. Then switching over to SciTec, how should we think about the contract mix going forward? I think you talked about trying to do more fixed price there.

Darren Ma

Yeah, I think the way to look at it is our mix of spacecraft and launch for the rest of this year, you're probably looking at somewhere in 85% spacecraft and the remainder launch. That's how I would view it. Yeah, I would add that the whole acquisition of SciTec has been very successful. One of the things that we look at is not only strategy and culture and financials, but also synergies. Our larger Firefly platform has been able to successfully unlock a lot of the synergies of one plus one equals four kind of moments with SciTec. You saw that with the Golden Dome Award announcement in the second quarter.

Jason Kim

And also, most recently the GBARD program, that is a $94 million phase one early phase program to look at the legacy radars that do missile warning, missile tracking, and space domain awareness, and then modernize that. Well, we are taking the FORGE playbook that is so successful and already battle-tested, and getting superior ratings from all the generals in the Pentagon. We are taking that and we are extending it, lifting and shifting it to other adjacent missions of phenomenologies like radar. And you could look at upside opportunities like air moving target indication and ground moving target indication and more. There is a lot of upside opportunities with what used to be the Space Development Agency in terms of the tracking layer tranches and the ground processing there. And then there is more Golden Dome upside opportunities as well.

Jason Kim

FORGE has become a really large part of what we are going to do in the future with SciTec.

Operator

One moment for our last question. It comes from the line of Suji Desilva with Roth Capital. Please proceed.

Suji Desilva

Hi, Jason. Hi, Darren. Hi, Michael. Apologize for the background noise here. Congrats on the progress. The backlog number, Darren, $1.5 billion, any color there? How much of that is launch versus spacecraft? And maybe also how much is covering the next 12 months to understand the near term versus longer term backlog?

Darren Ma

Hey, Suji, good to hear from you. We haven't really broken that out, but when you look at it from a conversion perspective, this quarter, $117.7 million, pretty much all of that was backlog conversion. When you look at that and kind of extrapolate where our $1.5 billion lands, you kind of see how far that stretches out. It's not exactly apples to apples because you have things like the Lockheed Martin multi-launch agreement mixed in there that extends through 2031. It's not a straightforward answer, but you can give a rough ballpark by extrapolating Q2.

Suji Desilva

Okay. Got it. It's a very high conversion rate. Then second question is on Elytra. Can you update us on the demand backlog there in pipeline and maybe how much Elytra is contributing to revenue in the next second half of this year or next year? Just to understand how that's coming into the revenue mix.

Jason Kim

Yeah. Hey, Suji. I'd like to unpack that in two parts. Maybe I'll start with the first part, which is the demand. You already see that we have an Elytra contract with the Defense Innovation Unit. That's clearly supporting space domain awareness and rendezvous proximity operations. It's very aligned with the White House executive order for space supremacy, where they're looking to advance capabilities for Department of Defense as well as involve commercial technology. We're doing all those things with our SINEQUONE mission. So that's progressing towards a launch no earlier than next year. In addition to that, each Blue Ghost 2, 3, 4 will have an Elytra transfer vehicle that will transfer the lander to their destination on the Moon's surface, but also serve as a long-haul communications relay, and also host our commercially available Ocula imaging and mapping service.

Jason Kim

So those Elytras are progressing, as you know, on Blue Ghost Mission 2. We're stacking our Elytras, so that's the progress we're making there. Then MoonFall, we were put on contract by Jet Propulsion Laboratory for this flagship Moon Base program that's moving really, really quickly. Because we have several Elytras in production, we're able to leverage the designs and the manufacturing and the supply chain for that vehicle. That gives us confidence of meeting that very stringent schedule. But everything you need to do to go successfully burn several times to get to the Moon to deploy those JPL drones is similar stuff that the Space Force needs to deploy high-value national security kind of constellations from GTO to GEO.

Jason Kim

We responded to a request for information recently, and we are progressing along with sharing information on our Elytra transfer vehicle to serve that fast transfer vehicle mission. That is a new category that we want to continue working with the Space Force on.

Darren Ma

Yeah. I would also add, singling out the Elytra missions by itself, while we are very excited about these contracts that Jason talked about, including MoonFall, which will go $75 million going through 2028, really does not do that product justice. Because when you look at it, Blue Ghost Mission 2 has an Elytra orbiter on there, right? So that contract in itself is a part of Elytra, and that allows us to really just leverage every R&D dollar on there and be really efficient about how we produce these vehicles.

Suji Desilva

Great. Appreciate the color. Thanks, Darren. Thanks, Jason.

Operator

Thank you so much. As I see no further questions in the queue, I will conclude the Q&A session and pass it back to Michael Sheetz for final comments.

Michael Sheetz

Thank you all for attending today's call. We look forward to speaking with you all again when we report our third-quarter results. Have a good one.

Operator

This concludes our conference. Thank you for participating, and you may now disconnect.

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-08-10

Firefly Aerospace Set to Report Q2 Earnings: Here's What to Expect

Zacks
Firefly Aerospace, Inc. FLY is scheduled to release second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 11, after market close. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 8.00% in the last reported quarter.Let’s discuss the factors that are likely to be reflected in the upcoming quarterly results. Firefly Aerospace’s second-quarter 2026 earnings are likely to have benefited from continued progress in its launch and lunar businesses. The company is working to increase the frequency of Alpha launches, with strong demand from national security and commercial customers expected to support its launch services business.Demand for lunar services is also expected to support results. Firefly Aerospace continued to make progress on its Blue Ghost lunar program, while customer interest in future lunar missions and larger landers remained strong.The company’s growing focus on national security space programs is likely to have provided another growth driver. Firefly Aerospace is pursuing opportunities in responsive launch, space communications, in-space transportation and space-based data processing for government customers.However, higher costs related to research and development, production expansion and the integration of SciTec are likely to have pressured the company’s bottom line. Continued investments in launch infrastructure and new space technologies are likely to have also weighed on profitability. Firefly Aerospace, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Firefly Aerospace, Inc. Quote The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at a loss of 50 cents per share, indicating a year-over-year improvement.The consensus estimate for revenues is pinned at $89.6 million, indicating a year-over-year increase of 476.2%. Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Firefly Aerospace this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here as you will see below.Earnings ESP: The company’s Earnings ESP is 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.Zacks Rank: Currently, Firefly Aerospace carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Below, we have mentioned a few players from the same sector that have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings in…Read full document

Firefly Aerospace, Inc. FLY is scheduled to release second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 11, after market close. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 8.00% in the last reported quarter.Let’s discuss the factors that are likely to be reflected in the upcoming quarterly results. Firefly Aerospace’s second-quarter 2026 earnings are likely to have benefited from continued progress in its launch and lunar businesses. The company is working to increase the frequency of Alpha launches, with strong demand from national security and commercial customers expected to support its launch services business.Demand for lunar services is also expected to support results. Firefly Aerospace continued to make progress on its Blue Ghost lunar program, while customer interest in future lunar missions and larger landers remained strong.The company’s growing focus on national security space programs is likely to have provided another growth driver. Firefly Aerospace is pursuing opportunities in responsive launch, space communications, in-space transportation and space-based data processing for government customers.However, higher costs related to research and development, production expansion and the integration of SciTec are likely to have pressured the company’s bottom line. Continued investments in launch infrastructure and new space technologies are likely to have also weighed on profitability. Firefly Aerospace, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Firefly Aerospace, Inc. Quote The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at a loss of 50 cents per share, indicating a year-over-year improvement.The consensus estimate for revenues is pinned at $89.6 million, indicating a year-over-year increase of 476.2%. Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Firefly Aerospace this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here as you will see below.Earnings ESP: The company’s Earnings ESP is 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.Zacks Rank: Currently, Firefly Aerospace carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Below, we have mentioned a few players from the same sector that have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings in the upcoming releases:Vertical Aerospace EVTL is set to report second-quarter 2026 earnings on Aug. 13, before market open. It has an Earnings ESP of +15.39% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EVTL’s loss is pegged at 39 cents per share, indicating year-over-year improvement. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 4.76% in the last reported quarter.Mercury Systems MRCY is slated to report its fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results on Aug. 18, after market close. It has an Earnings ESP of +6.67% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MRCY’s loss is pegged at 38 cents per share. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 350% in the last reported quarter.Heico HEI is slated to report its third-quarter fiscal 2026 results soon. It has an Earnings ESP of +3.99% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.HEI’s long-term earnings growth rate is 16.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.50 per share, which suggests a year-over-year rise of 19.1%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Firefly Aerospace, Inc. (FLY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Heico Corporation (HEI) : Free Stock Analysis Report Mercury Systems Inc (MRCY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Vertical Aerospace Ltd. (EVTL) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-07-15

Firefly Aerospace to Announce Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results on August 11, 2026

GlobeNewswire

CEDAR PARK, Texas, July 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Firefly Aerospace (Nasdaq: FLY), a market leading space and defense technology company, today announced it will release its second quarter 2026 financial results for the period ended June 30, 2026, on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, after market close. Firefly will hold a conference call the same day at 4:00 p.m. CT / 5:00 p.m. ET. A live webcast of the call and a replay will be available in the Investors section of the Company’s website at https://investors.fireflyspace.com. The financial results news release will be posted in the Investors section of the Company’s website under the “News” section. Additional materials supporting the conference call and financial results release will be posted under the "Events & Resources" section. About Firefly Aerospace Firefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company on a mission to reliably and repeatedly launch, land, and operate space systems from Earth to the Moon and beyond. As the partner of choice for responsive space missions, Firefly is the first commercial company to launch a satellite to orbit with approximately 24-hour notice and the first to achieve a successful landing on the Moon. Established in 2017, Firefly’s engineering, manufacturing, and test facilities are co-located in central Texas to enable rapid innovation and vertical integration for the company’s small- to medium-lift launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles. For more information, visit www.fireflyspace.com. ContactsMedia [email protected] Investor [email protected]

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-06

Space IPOs Diverge On Results, Rocket Lab Earnings Soon. All Three Are Near Buy Points.

Investor's Business Daily

Space IPO plays Firefly Aerospace and Voyager Technologies reported late Monday. Rocket Lab reports Thursday.

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-05

FLY Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript

Motley Fool
Image source: The Motley Fool. Monday, May 4, 2026 at 5 p.m. ET Chief Executive Officer — Jason Kim Chief Financial Officer — Darren Ma Director of Investor Relations — Michael Sheetz Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] Operator: Greetings. Welcome to the Firefly Aerospace Inc. First Quarter 2026 Financial Results Conference Call. At this time, participants are in a listen-only mode. A question-and-answer session will follow the formal remarks. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press 11 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press 11 again. Please note, this conference call is being recorded. I will now turn the conference over to Michael Sheetz, Firefly Aerospace Inc.'s Director of Investor Relations. Michael, you may begin. Thank you, Operator. Michael Sheetz: Hello there, and may the fourth be with you. I am Michael Sheetz, and welcome to Firefly Aerospace Inc.'s first quarter financial results call. I am pleased to be joined on the call by CEO, Jason Kim, and CFO, Darren Ma, as we report for the period ending 03/31/2026. Today’s call will include forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements the company will make about future financial and operating performance, growth strategy, and market outlook. Actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results and trends to differ materially are set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. Firefly Aerospace Inc. assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their respective dates. Also, on this call, we will discuss both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures is included in the first quarter 2026 earnings release. Unless otherwise stated, financial information referenced in this call will be non-GAAP. Our earnings press release, SEC filings, and a replay of today’s call can be found on our investor website at investors.firefliespace.com. I will now turn the call over to Jason. Jason Kim: Thank you, Michael, and welcome to our first quarter 2026 earnings call. Firefly Aerospace Inc. opened the year with strong execution and increasing momentum driven by major government pro…Read full document

Image source: The Motley Fool. Monday, May 4, 2026 at 5 p.m. ET Chief Executive Officer — Jason Kim Chief Financial Officer — Darren Ma Director of Investor Relations — Michael Sheetz Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email [email protected] Operator: Greetings. Welcome to the Firefly Aerospace Inc. First Quarter 2026 Financial Results Conference Call. At this time, participants are in a listen-only mode. A question-and-answer session will follow the formal remarks. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press 11 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press 11 again. Please note, this conference call is being recorded. I will now turn the conference over to Michael Sheetz, Firefly Aerospace Inc.'s Director of Investor Relations. Michael, you may begin. Thank you, Operator. Michael Sheetz: Hello there, and may the fourth be with you. I am Michael Sheetz, and welcome to Firefly Aerospace Inc.'s first quarter financial results call. I am pleased to be joined on the call by CEO, Jason Kim, and CFO, Darren Ma, as we report for the period ending 03/31/2026. Today’s call will include forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements the company will make about future financial and operating performance, growth strategy, and market outlook. Actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results and trends to differ materially are set forth in our annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. Firefly Aerospace Inc. assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their respective dates. Also, on this call, we will discuss both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures is included in the first quarter 2026 earnings release. Unless otherwise stated, financial information referenced in this call will be non-GAAP. Our earnings press release, SEC filings, and a replay of today’s call can be found on our investor website at investors.firefliespace.com. I will now turn the call over to Jason. Jason Kim: Thank you, Michael, and welcome to our first quarter 2026 earnings call. Firefly Aerospace Inc. opened the year with strong execution and increasing momentum driven by major government programs that align directly with our core capabilities. We delivered record quarterly revenue of $81 million. The acceleration of the ARTEMIS program combined with NASA’s Moon Base Initiative calls for monthly robotic lunar landings and reinforces the demand signals we have been building toward. Our early investments to scale Blue Ghost production and our milestone as the first commercial company to land on the Moon successfully position us to be a critical commercial partner as NASA expands lunar operations. With three additional missions ahead, we are already executing toward the goal. We also advanced our ocular lunar imaging service through a new partnership with NVIDIA, enabling on-orbit processing for faster, more actionable data in cislunar space. On the national security front, Firefly Aerospace Inc. subsidiary, SciTech, secured an agreement with the U.S. Space Force to support the space-based program under Golden Dome. We are concurrently delivering and proving the value of our AI-enabled data processing through the U.S. Space Force’s operational FORGE missile defense system. Within launch, the capacity-constrained market is driving increased demand for Alpha following its successful return to flight. We also completed the Victus DM responsive launch demonstration and made steady progress on our reusable Eclipse rocket in the first quarter. The pace of change in the space economy is accelerating, and Firefly Aerospace Inc. is scaling up our existing revenue-generating capabilities to meet the demand across every line of business. For those new to Firefly Aerospace Inc., we are a space and defense company delivering innovative hardware and software to perform the hardest missions in space for national security, exploration, and commercial technology. Our hardware is represented by four revenue-generating products: our Blue Ghost lunar landers, ELECTRA satellite orbiters, small-lift Alpha rockets, and medium-lift Eclipse rockets. Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s software portfolio falls under our SciTech AI-enabled defense systems, which are proven in national security operations. The industry tailwinds behind artificial intelligence and data centers are fueling operational realities for our company as we deliver crucial no-fail systems in support of the U.S. and our allies. We are meeting the U.S. government’s call for commercial investment, speed, and scale in defense and exploration. Our advanced technology products and funding of infrastructure include upgrades and expansion of Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s co-located spacecraft and rocket factories, clean rooms, and test stands, as well as our data centers and classified facilities. Now turning to our business updates. In the first quarter, we completed new milestones across each of our product lines and services. The lunar opportunity is here. Recent milestones, including the NASA Moon Base event, Artemis II successful lunar orbit, and our Blue Ghost Moon landing and surface operations, ignited the industry and the world. The Moon is now a permanent destination. NASA’s Moon Base plan represents a dramatic acceleration of the ARTEMIS program, with a detailed pathway to a regular cadence of missions to the surface and persistent support from satellites in lunar orbit. Our prior growth strategy was to extend from one Moon landing a year to multiple a year, and now we have an amplified demand signal from NASA. The agency’s objective is to provide multiple robotic landings on the Moon’s surface starting next year, as well as larger lander missions to support the required lunar infrastructure for a permanent presence. The first two phases of the NASA Moon Base architecture taking place over the next seven years represent a $20 billion program with multiple shots-on-goal opportunities for Firefly Aerospace Inc. When you combine Blue Ghost, the only commercial lander to operate successfully, with our ELECTRA spacecraft, we provide the ideal system to deliver and support many of the payloads and capabilities needed, such as navigation, orgo communications, surface observation, power infrastructure, exploration drones, rovers, cargo, and support systems for humans on the Moon. The Moon is a vastly untapped resource, and Firefly Aerospace Inc. is the tip of the spear in the routine deliveries and services that NASA needs to support a permanent presence on the Moon. Last week, we heard NASA Administrator Isaac Minh’s request at a congressional hearing to template Blue Ghost and launch with frequency. As stated earlier, we are already building towards this. In the first quarter, we made significant progress on our new clean room, which is four times the size of our existing clean room. This enables a production line of lunar landers for frequent missions. We are leveraging our vertical integration to scale up while also investing in our Blue Ghost supply chain. We are working closely with each major supplier to ensure they are ramping up with us through long-term agreements and strategic inventory in place to ensure quality, schedule, and quantities of delivery. Meanwhile, assembly of our Blue Ghost lander and ELECTRA orbiter is well underway for Blue Ghost Mission 2, and we are on track to complete assembly and payload integration this summer. We named Blue Ghost Mission 2 Riders to the Dark, as our team charges toward another historic milestone conducting the first American landing on the Moon’s far side carrying both NASA and commercial payloads. We are making progress on our additional lander contracts. With the Blue Ghost Mission 3 preliminary design review complete, which verifies the vehicle’s design to deliver payloads to the Moon’s Gruithuisen Domes, the team is now preparing to complete the critical design review for Mission 3 while also getting ready to complete the preliminary design review for Blue Ghost Mission 4 to the Moon’s South Pole. Moving to ELECTRA, we are pleased to add NVIDIA as another Firefly Aerospace Inc. partner, with our first collaboration included as part of our ocular lunar imaging service. NVIDIA’s Jetson module was embedded in the high-resolution Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory telescopes and delivered to Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s spacecraft facility for integration on our ELECTRA orbital vehicle. ELECTRA will first serve as a transfer vehicle and communications relay for Blue Ghost, and then begin our Oculus service to support advanced lunar surface mapping, mineral detection, and reconnaissance for five years in lunar orbit. Our ocular data will be rapidly processed onboard ELECTRA and autonomously transmitted back to Earth utilizing the NVIDIA Jetson module combined with Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s SciTech-enabled AI software. This allows Firefly Aerospace Inc. to mitigate downlink constraints from the Moon by processing data on orbit before it is transmitted to Earth as real-time actionable insights for government and commercial customers. Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s AI software will further enable advanced space domain awareness. Our AI algorithms and data fusion technologies are already proven in critical national security missions in Earth orbit. Our software will enable ELECTRA to leverage multiple data feeds onboard to more accurately track objects and provide timely situational awareness to space operations occurring in the cislunar domain. These capabilities are transferable to ELECTRA’s upcoming space domain awareness mission for the Defense Innovation Unit’s Sinaquon project. This mission also incorporates high-resolution Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory telescopes, just like the ones enabling our Oculus service. After completing the critical design review for the mission, the team has begun building and testing ELECTRA flight hardware. Additionally, in the first quarter, Firefly Aerospace Inc. completed critical ELECTRA test milestones for Blue Ghost Mission 2, including separation testing to demonstrate ELECTRA’s mechanisms that will deploy the European Space Agency’s Lunar Pathfinder satellite following separation from our Blue Ghost lander. This further highlights ELECTRA’s ability to operate and deploy critical high-mass payloads across cislunar space. The team also completed the initial interoperability test to ensure our ELECTRA orbiter communicates with Blue Ghost on the Moon’s far side and acts as a backup communications relay for NASA’s Lucy Knight payload. This enables NASA’s radio telescope to operate for up to two years on the surface even without direct line of sight to Earth. This relay service on ELECTRA is the pathway to our commercial offering, delivering alternative communications options that reduce blackout periods and strengthen connectivity for multiple future lunar missions for Firefly Aerospace Inc. and our customers. As we saw at the recent Space Symposium event, there is growing demand for ELECTRA’s robust capabilities combined with our AI-powered software to support dynamic space operations for national security, space exploration, and international missions. The demand includes space maneuverability to novel orbits, deorbit services for multiple spacecraft, and long-haul communications. At the symposium, U.S. Space Force Major General Purdy further emphasized the need for enhanced national security capabilities in cislunar space, including transportation, communications, and navigation systems beyond Earth orbit. Once deployed, those assets require protection and continuous monitoring, which is best done from the Moon as the ultimate high ground. Our ELECTRA vehicles are well positioned to enable these missions with high-thrust precision Spectra engines, ample fuel and payload capacity, and AI software. As General Salzman said in his April 30 congressional testimony, speed, scale, and clear demand signals are critical, and ELECTRA positions us to capture that with responsive on-orbit capability. We will continue to scale up our ELECTRA production line as demand steadily increases. Moving to our SciTech software offerings under our spacecraft business, we are pleased to be selected by the U.S. Space Force to support the space-based program under Golden Dome. In a Space Force press release just a week ago, this program was announced to develop a space-based missile defense interceptor system that will demonstrate capability integrated into the Golden Dome architecture by 2028. Space Force awarded a select group of companies, including Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s subsidiary, SciTech, with contracts totaling up to $3.2 billion. This critical program will enable next-generation space-based tracking and advanced interceptors integrated with artificial intelligence to counter the speed, maneuverability, and lethality of threats. As the prime contractor, we continue to execute on the operational U.S. Space Force FORGE system, providing a modernized AI-enabled missile warning and tracking architecture. We are rapidly processing vast amounts of data from satellites across all orbits, from LEO to MEO to GEO, to deliver high-quality mission-critical information to our warfighters to defend against threats. After the Space Force operationally accepted our FORGE system last year, in the first quarter we were awarded a $109 million engineering change proposal to accelerate and expand data center delivery. This critical system processed thousands of threats in the first 30 days of the Iran conflict to help protect the warfighters. The team further completed the interim ground readiness review for the Space Development Agency as part of our role in delivering the mission and data fusion ground components for the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture satellite constellation Tranche 1 Tracking Layer. More recently, the Air Force Research Laboratory awarded us a contract to support development of the advanced algorithm R&D and verification architecture by implementing deep learning and advanced AI algorithms on small size, weight, and power processors. This capability supports enhanced target detection, tracking, and custody and is conducive to future on-orbit processing missions. Last week, we also heard Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Kane underscore in a congressional hearing the urgent need for critical investments in space-based command and control, artificial intelligence, advanced surveillance, and reconnaissance. This capability counters modern multi-domain threats, where operations are coordinated and synchronized across air, land, sea, space, and cyber domains. Our proven AI software and on-orbit processing capabilities are well positioned to support these multi-domain operations. Shifting to launch, in March Alpha Flight 7 successfully returned to flight and completed all mission objectives after deploying a Lockheed Martin demonstrator payload and validating key Block 2 subsystems. Additionally, in the first quarter, Firefly Aerospace Inc. supported Lockheed Martin on the U.S. Space Force’s Victus DM mission, performing two responsive space exercises to practice advanced emergency launch protocols required in a real threat scenario. Victus DM marks the second tactically responsive space effort that Firefly Aerospace Inc. completed to date after our record-setting Victus Nox mission, which launched with a 24-hour notice. The first Victus DM exercise included a rapid payload process demonstration where spacecraft arrival, operations checkouts, mating, and encapsulation were completed in under 12 hours. The second exercise included a 36-hour rapid launch simulation to practice and advance emergency launch protocols required to execute tactically responsive space missions in a real threat scenario. We are now focused on delivering our first Block 2 vehicle, which will debut on Flight 8 that is targeted to launch late this summer. Block 2 is designed to expand Alpha’s deployable launch capabilities for critical responsive space missions, such as hypersonic testing, national security missions, and commercial satellite launches for domestic and international customers. Firefly Aerospace Inc. completed qualification testing for the first- and second-stage tanks for Flight 8 and moved into the integration and test phase as we progress toward launch. The significant improvements across Alpha from Block 2 focus on enhancing reliability and production rate as part of our company culture of safety, quality, and reliability. And we are working ahead. We have structures and engines in build for Flights 9, 10, and beyond, rolling off our automated fiber placement machine and into assembly, as we continue to target three more Alpha launches in 2026. For our 2027 manifest and beyond, we talked to both new and repeat customers at Space Symposium this year and see strong interest in Alpha on the heels of our successful Flight 7 launch. As we look to the future, we are pleased to see the recent Swedish defense budget allocating tens of millions to invest in orbital launch infrastructure. Our international partners want to bring Alpha to market in Sweden, as well as other allied countries. To meet the growing demand for satellite launch capabilities around the globe, this approach allows us to not only increase our launch cadence, but also open new markets, add resiliency to our launch sites, and provide a national security advantage. Firefly Aerospace Inc. also recently signed an agreement with Seagate Space to collaborate on the development of an offshore launch platform that enables responsive sea-based Alpha launches. Together, we will work to mature the design of an integrated offshore launch system capable of supporting the unique requirements of liquid-fueled orbital rockets. These capabilities are in alignment with the Space Force demands for flexible infrastructure to accommodate responsive small launchers and eliminate single points of failure. In the Spaceport of the Future report, they have called for flexible manifesting, rapid integration, and launch-to-orbit timelines of 24 hours or less for designated payloads, which we have proven on Victus Nox. Everything we learned from building, testing, and launching our Alpha rockets allows us to improve and reduce risk for Eclipse. Our reusable medium-lift vehicle is marching towards its debut, while the need for more launch capacity from more providers is growing. All the major flight articles for our first Eclipse vehicles are in build and test, including our Miranda flight engines. In the first quarter, we completed qualification of the Eclipse interstage, a critical primary structure that connects the first stage to the second stage, as well as the liquid oxygen transfer line and the composite overwrap pressure vessels. More recently, we are progressing through the test campaign on Eclipse’s first-stage tanks, which tower nearly 100 feet tall. This risk-reduction testing allows us to push the tanks beyond their limits to verify flight margins. With that business summary, I will turn it over to Darren for a review of the first quarter financials. Darren Ma: Thank you, Jason, and good afternoon, everyone. We delivered record Q1 revenue driven by strong business fundamentals. As Jason highlighted, we have multiple growth drivers in place, which gives us confidence in achieving our long-term objectives. On today’s call, I am going to review the financial results of first quarter 2026 before handing the call back to Jason for closing remarks. For listeners new to Firefly Aerospace Inc., I want to reemphasize that key operational metrics drive our financial performance. In our spacecraft solutions business, we generally recognize revenue over time under each contract as we complete milestones. This adds a more predictable, recurring revenue component alongside the more event-driven launch business. For the launch business, we focus on the number of launches; for example, revenue for our operational Alpha vehicle is recognized at a point in time when the launch occurs. For Eclipse, while in development, we recognize revenue as a percentage of completion based on program milestones as part of the Northrop Grumman partnership. Once the Eclipse vehicle is operational, we will recognize revenue in the same manner as Alpha, when launches occur. Now turning to our first quarter results. We delivered the highest quarter of revenue in the company’s history, at $80.9 million. This compares with $57.7 million in the fourth quarter and $55.9 million in the same quarter a year ago. The sequential revenue growth was driven by the ramp of the FORGE and Golden Dome space-based interceptor programs, a full quarter of SciTech, and the successful Alpha launch. Within our total revenue, spacecraft solutions accounted for $67.6 million, and launch was $13.3 million. We ended the first quarter with a total backlog of approximately $1.3 billion, relatively flat from last quarter, reflecting the conversion of backlog to revenue and timing of new awards. As Jason mentioned earlier, we are excited about the industry tailwinds, including NASA opportunities for Blue Ghost, customer demand for Alpha, additional missions for ELECTRA, and increasing demand for our AI software solutions. Our position in the market and these sector catalysts provide Firefly Aerospace Inc. with confidence in our long-term revenue growth trajectory. First quarter GAAP gross margin was 21.6%, compared with 27.7% in the prior quarter. The change was primarily due to a higher mix of cost-plus program contracts driving revenue. GAAP operating expenses for the first quarter were $113.1 million, compared with $101.6 million in the fourth quarter. The increase was primarily from the inclusion of SciTech’s operating expenses for the full quarter and our continued R&D investments. For operating expenses, the primary differences between GAAP and non-GAAP measures are stock-based compensation expense, one-time transaction-related expenses, and the amortization of intangibles. Non-GAAP operating expenses for the first quarter were $93.7 million, compared with $80.5 million in the fourth quarter. The sequential increase was driven by our continued R&D investments to support Alpha Block 2 production ramp and Eclipse development. GAAP operating loss was $95.7 million, compared with a loss of $85.6 million in the fourth quarter. Non-GAAP operating loss was $76.2 million, compared with a loss of $64.5 million in the fourth quarter. GAAP net loss in the first quarter was $96.7 million, compared with a loss of $41.1 million in the fourth quarter. As a reminder, we recognized a one-time $37.1 million tax benefit related to the SciTech acquisition and a one-time $8.4 million gain on settlement of contingent liabilities in Q4. Our non-GAAP net loss in the first quarter was $74 million. This compares with a net loss of $58.5 million in the prior quarter. GAAP basic and diluted net loss per share was $0.61, compared with a loss of $0.26 last quarter. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per share for the first quarter was $0.46, compared with a loss of $0.38 last quarter. We exited Q1 with a share count of 160.1 million shares. We expect our total share count to increase by about 1 million shares per quarter. Stock-based compensation expense was $12.5 million in the first quarter, compared to $12.6 million in the prior quarter. Adjusted EBITDA in the first quarter was a loss of $64.7 million, compared with a loss of $57.3 million in the fourth quarter. Turning to our balance sheet, we ended the quarter with total liquidity of $811.6 million, consisting of $551.6 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments and $260 million of available capacity from our revolving credit facility. After the close of the quarter, we upsized the capacity of our credit facility to $305 million, which remains undrawn. Capital expenditures in the first quarter were $16.3 million, compared with $12.1 million in the fourth quarter. The sequential increase was driven by test and upgrades to support Alpha Block 2 production and spacecraft manufacturing expansion that positions us to support NASA’s accelerated lunar opportunities. Free cash flow was an outflow of $78.9 million, compared with an outflow of $79.3 million in the fourth quarter. As a reminder, in the second quarter, we will have the final SciTech acquisition-related payment of approximately $24 million reflected in our cash flow. Now turning to our revenue outlook for 2026. With continued strength across our business, we remain confident in our trajectory to achieve significant annual revenue growth this year and are reiterating our outlook of $420 million to $450 million, consistent with what we gave on the March call. Thank you for your interest in Firefly Aerospace Inc. With that, I will turn the call back to Jason for his closing remarks. Jason Kim: Thank you, Darren. The first quarter proved what we have been building toward: Firefly Aerospace Inc. is not just participating in the space economy, we are shaping it. This is a defining moment in our industry. From our Moon landing to missile defense systems, from responsive launch to AI-powered space domain awareness, we are delivering the integrated capabilities that define the future of space exploration and defense operations. NASA is accelerating. The Space Force is investing. Our allies are mobilizing. Firefly Aerospace Inc. stands ready, with mission-proven hardware in production, battle-tested software in operation, and our team of Fireflies innovating and executing at pace. We stand at the threshold of a new era, where what was once impossible becomes inevitable. Firefly Aerospace Inc. has the end-to-end ecosystem to make it happen. Thank you for joining today’s call. Michael Sheetz: Thank you, Jason. Operator, we are ready to take questions. We will now open the call for questions. Operator: Thank you so much. Please press 11 and wait for your name to be announced. To remove yourself, press 11 again. One moment for our first question. It comes from the line of Sheila Kahyaoglu with Jefferies. Please proceed. Sheila Kahyaoglu: Good afternoon, and thank you so much for the time. This morning, you announced SciTech won a key position among 12 total companies on Space Force’s space-based interceptor program. Can you maybe elaborate on that win a little bit more, your positioning there, and how SciTech accelerates the growth profile of Firefly Aerospace Inc.? Jason Kim: Thanks, Sheila. I will go back to what we have said before on previous earnings calls: Firefly Aerospace Inc. had multiple shots on goal for Golden Dome. We have referenced that a lot of the capabilities that SciTech has in battle-tested AI development on the FORGE program, which went operational last September, have seen a lot in real operations, particularly in Iran. A lot of the battle-tested algorithms are very transferable to other programs like Golden Dome. And if you remember what General Gulmein has said before, one of the hardest parts of such an architecture of this magnitude and complexity is the command and control and the fire control, the ground processing. Because SciTech is battle-tested and has exercised AI in no-fail missions in real-world operations, all those algorithms are transferable to Golden Dome as well. And then, as you know, our Alpha rocket is able to take 1 ton to orbit as well as 2 tons to suborbital, so it makes it really right-sized to launch hypersonic tests, potentially targets, for things like space-based interceptor. So there are multiple shots that we have on goal. Sheila Kahyaoglu: Great. Thank you for that. And maybe, Jason, you called out in the slides you expect a $20 billion opportunity for the initial phases of the Artemis Moon Base Program over the next seven years, based on monthly missions and large landers. What are you hearing from the customer on that, and can you talk about your operational readiness in support of that type of cadence? Jason Kim: Yes. The bold thinking that we heard from NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman recently since he released the Moon Base plans by NASA is the exact type of thinking that we embrace at Firefly Aerospace Inc. We were already thinking ahead and already building out our clean rooms and our production line capabilities to support not just one lunar lander a year, but multiple. This just further validates or amplifies the demand signal. When you look at having a permanent presence on the Moon, you have to validate a lot of technologies to understand the Moon better, to support human environmental control life support systems on the Moon, take cargo to the Moon, as well as have mobility such as rovers and light terrain vehicles. All those things are what we are working on with landers that can be templated into production-line landers so that we can address the frequency that is being demanded by NASA to take those types of technologies. One of the things that we are doing is we have quadrupled our clean room space compared to our existing clean room. That floor space and footprint help us with the rate. With our new Chief Operating Officer, Ramon Sanchez, who came in the fourth quarter of last year, he has brought a lot of best practices and expertise of production flow and labor and equipment utilization. That is helping us with ramping up production lines. We are vertically integrated as well, so one of the things that is important for rating up lunar landers is having the hardware put together and having the components. We build the avionics, we build the harnesses, carbon composites, and structures. We also are investing in some of our supply chain of our critical components. We are working closely with our supply chain in terms of having their dedicated support as well as strategic inventory and quality. Safety, quality, and reliability are really important to us. That is our focus as well. At the end of the day, it is about increasing the frequency of launch of these lunar landers, also building bigger lunar landers that we have designs for, and ensuring the probability of mission success just like we did on Blue Ghost Mission 1. Operator: Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Seth Seifman with JPMorgan. Please proceed. Seth Seifman: Hey, thanks very much, and good afternoon. I wanted to follow up quickly on the space-based interceptor award for SciTech and just understand in terms of how they fit in, how you see the ground station role ramping up. What specifically does the infrastructure that SciTech has now— is that what would be used to support a space-based interceptor as part of Golden Dome? Is it something that would require the build-out of new infrastructure? If you can help us think in a little bit more detailed way what that involves, and where we saw there were several contracts that went out to different companies to work on it, are there other competitors who are potentially playing the same role here? Jason Kim: Hey, Seth. I think I mentioned in the fourth quarter of last year that SciTech, the acquisition of SciTech, was strategic, and it truly is. It really bolstered Firefly Aerospace Inc.’s entrance into national security, and in particular SciTech is the prime contractor on FORGE. That is a multi-hundred-million-dollar program of record. It is doing AI today in real-world operations. If you remember what General Gutlein said about Golden Dome, he is looking to defeat or stay ahead of the threats that have speed and maneuverability as well as lethality. One of the things that counters that is AI and the use of AI. Because SciTech has that capability as well as a rich history of 45 years of algorithms that also have been used to support the Space Force and the Air Force and the Missile Defense Agency, all of those battle-tested operational algorithms are also brought to bear for things like Golden Dome ground processing. With the AI processing, you can speed up the timelines because the threats are very advanced. In terms of the capabilities that SciTech has, they can mix and match a lot of those algorithms together to apply to this mission. Seth Seifman: And then just in terms of the overall contribution that they had in the quarter, is that something that you guys can disclose? Darren Ma: We have not broken it out separately, but FORGE and Golden Dome space-based have had revenue ramp up in Q1 this quarter. Seth Seifman: Very good. Thanks very much. Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Kristine Liwag with Morgan Stanley. Please proceed. Kristine Liwag: I wanted to follow up on your comments about Alpha after Flight 7’s success. You called out stronger customer demand, but backlog is relatively flat in the quarter. Does that mean that you anticipate orders that occurred after the quarter closed? And how should we think about the order trends for the year? Jason Kim: Hi, Kristine. Yes, we are seeing strong interest in Alpha on the heels of the successful Alpha Flight 7 Stairway to Seven mission. We completed all the post-data; everything was nominal. I was in the Mission Control Room with our team, and it was a flawless launch. It was with a Lockheed Martin demonstrator as well. We were able to insert that into the proper orbit. We even had our relight of the second stage. A lot of the transition to Block 2—a lot of the components and technologies that are going to help us with manufacturability and reliability on Block 2—were tested on Flight 7, to include the in-house avionics, the in-house batteries, and some temperature protection systems. We are very happy with those results. Because of that, at Space Symposium there was a lot of interest with existing customers as well as new customers. It is a matter of timing. A lot of our government customers, as you know, are going through some timing with their funding, as well as we had a lot of interactions with new customers as well. I will pass it on to Darren in terms of any additional color. Darren Ma: I think you covered it, Jason. Also keep in mind, we burned down the backlog this quarter with the record revenue quarter as well. Kristine Liwag: Great. Super helpful. And if I could pivot to the Moon opportunities. With NASA potentially skipping Artemis and going straight to the Moon, Blue Ghost’s capability set is really unique there with your successful landing as the first commercial company to have done so. But as you start seeing other companies accelerate their human landing systems capabilities and a much higher volume of potential payload that could reach the Moon, how do you think about where Blue Ghost lives in the construct when you have higher volume available too? Where does it live in that ecosystem, and how do we think about the longer-term opportunity for Blue Ghost? I think, Jason, you called out that you are also looking at a higher payload lander in the future. Jason Kim: Yes. In terms of our Blue Ghost line, we have designs for larger landers. A lot of the underlying technologies that made us successfully land and perform the 14 days of surface operations on Blue Ghost Mission 1 are transferable to our larger lander designs as well. If you go back to the NASA budgets, the CLPS 1.0 program, which is a highly successful program, has increased its budget from $2.6 billion to $4.2 billion. The anticipated CLPS 2.0 program is going to be around $6 billion. When you look at post-2030 landings, there are at least three 500-kilogram-to-lunar-surface CLPS missions, then there are twelve 3-ton mass-to-lunar-surface missions as well, and the remaining 15 are around 8 tons of mass to the lunar surface. Those are all in our roadmap. In fact, our larger lunar lander designs are scalable to meet that demand. It is not just the frequency of launch cadence of these lunar landers that NASA is asking for; it is also the magnitude, or the size, of these lunar landers that are increasing. Because we have a lot of capabilities that share common vertically integrated components such as carbon composites and engine technology as well as avionics—we build big things at this company. Our Alpha rocket is 100 feet tall, and our Eclipse rocket is 200 feet tall. So building a larger lander is right up our alley. Kristine Liwag: Great. Super helpful. And when do you think you could see these demand signals firm up into contracts? Jason Kim: We are seeing a lot of requests already, Kristine. There are things like CLPS 2, Moonfall, and CS-8, and CLPS 2.0. The majority of these are already solicitations that are out. If NASA stays on schedule, performers can get on contract as early as the third quarter of this year for some of these. Kristine Liwag: Great. Thank you for the color. Operator: Our next question comes from Edison Yu with Deutsche Bank. Please proceed. Edison Yu: Hey. This is Laura on for Edison. Thanks for taking our question. I want to ask about more broadly how we should think about the role of AI across your business today. Given your recently announced NVIDIA collaboration and also the R&D contract you were awarded, should we be thinking AI is primarily supporting SciTech’s software, or do you also see it becoming increasingly important for the spacecraft, autonomy, etc.? Jason Kim: You are exactly right, Laura, that we see AI as critically important to space. One of the visions that we have is we want to deploy on-orbit processing more and more. That is what makes the SciTech acquisition so strategic in the fourth quarter last year: we were thinking ahead, and SciTech’s software is operational on the ground today with big data centers to do no-fail Space Force missions and programs of record. They also have experience operationally performing on-orbit processing in space. That is one of the things that we envision at Firefly Aerospace Inc.—we have the whole ecosystem to launch satellites, build the satellites, operate the satellites with processing onboard with the SciTech algorithms to perform AI and processing with low latency, because a lot of these missions that we are going after, especially in national security, have very short timelines to be effective. Our recent partnership news with NVIDIA around the Moon on our Oculus service to do space domain awareness more quickly using AI and SciTech algorithms is a perfect example of taking things that work on the ground or in low Earth orbit and deploying them to the Moon because the Moon is the ultimate high ground. We see more and more deployment of AI on orbit. In addition, AI is being used across the company to increase productivity. We see it not only in the products that we provide but also in how we do work as well. Operator: As a reminder, to ask a question, simply press 11. Our next question comes from the line of Sujeeva De Silva with ROTH Capital. Please proceed. Sujeeva De Silva: Hi, Jason. Hi, Darren. Congratulations on the progress here. Following up on the Alpha discussions you have had at Space Symposium and others, given your strong government defense relationships, do we expect the launches in the future manifest to remain primarily government, or do you think you will diversify into civil or commercial? Obviously, there is strong demand from government, but wondering if it will be an effort on your part to diversify that or that should not be the expectation. Jason Kim: Hi, Sujeeva. Demand is not the problem with Alpha. We are steadily increasing rate year to year because there is so much demand from national security as well as commercial and civil. In terms of the benefits of the Alpha rocket—being a 1-ton-to-orbit capability and a 2-ton-to-suborbital capability, as well as having the responsive launch capability like we demonstrated on Victus Nox and recently with Victus DM—that really is very fit for national security purposes. If you think about national security, if there was a conflict, especially a near-peer conflict, one of the things that would be vulnerable are our launch sites. We have a deployable Alpha capability that we would like to field. With that capability, you could get resiliency through having a deployed capability in case any of the U.S. launch capabilities are inoperable. We are opening up a launch pad in Sweden, and that is the first time that we are going to take Alpha global. With our deployable launch system, we could take it to other places. Having the resiliency tied to the 1-ton capability that is right-sized to counter threats that U.S. adversaries might put into low Earth orbit, in addition to the 24-hour response timeline that we demonstrated on Victus Nox, is a combination that really supports national security very well. Sujeeva De Silva: Great. Thanks, Jason. And then my other question is on ELECTRA. With the first launch of the lunar satellite with the second Blue Ghost, can you remind us of the revenue model framework for ELECTRA—whether you can start revenue with that launch—and does the NVIDIA partnership enhance your pricing or revenue opportunity above and beyond what it was before? Darren Ma: Hey, Sujeeva. The ELECTRA that is on Blue Ghost Mission 2 is recognized as part of the entire contract. Blue Ghost Mission 2, we won it for $130 million. We have a number of commercial payloads on there, including a rover from the UAE and a couple of other commercial payloads that are add-ons on top of that. The Oculus imaging service is another add-on top of that as well. That is all being recognized over time, as we discussed on the call. Sujeeva De Silva: Great. And, Darren, does the NVIDIA partnership enhance your ability to capture revenue in Oculus? Jason Kim: That is definitely part of the Oculus imaging service. The way to look at this is Oculus on Blue Ghost Mission 2—we are going to be able to experiment and try out different modes. Not only are we going to be able to send the raw data from doing lunar mapping and surveying, as well as sending space domain awareness data down to the ground to get processed even more, we are going to be able to demonstrate and experiment with AI on our NVIDIA module that is on the Oculus sensor using SciTech algorithms. There is going to be a lot of new discovery, and those are the kinds of things that the Department of Defense as well as NASA are looking for more of. There is more to come there. Operator: Our last question comes from Analyst with KeyBanc Capital Markets. Please proceed. Analyst: Hey, thanks for taking my question. It is Liam on for Mike today. I wanted to ask more broadly about NASA’s lunar plans and building a base on the Moon. What do you think would be the most feasible type of power generation to power the grid for lunar operations? What type of role could Firefly Aerospace Inc. play in powering the lunar grid? Jason Kim: I will go back to Blue Ghost Mission 1. When we successfully landed, we performed the 14 days of surface operations, which is the longest of any commercial mission on the surface of the Moon. We also had an engineering change proposal to look at operating slightly into the lunar night. Using our in-house batteries, we were able to operate five hours into the lunar night and still gather data from that. One of the things we can do in the future is add more batteries as we collect solar energy from our solar arrays. That will allow us to keep heating critical components like avionics and instruments on the lunar lander to last longer into the lunar night. We could also scale our solar energy as well. That is something that we have proven with Blue Ghost Mission 1. There are other opportunities like radioisotope heater units (RHUs). As you remember from the Mars missions, there are also other types of RTGs that can be used. Nuclear-powered plants can be used as well. Those are all things that NASA will want to explore more of because the essential things that you need to have a permanent presence on the Moon are things like power, communications, and navigation, and those are all things that Firefly Aerospace Inc. envisions continuing to support NASA with. Analyst: Thanks. And then lastly, on Blue Ghost, given NASA’s increased appetite for landers versus three months ago, how should we think about segment gross margins once mission cadence ramps up? Has there been any change to your view on Blue Ghost margins? Darren Ma: We have not— the only thing that has really changed there is in the program. Previously, we were planning to win multiple shots on goal each year, but now that has really accelerated. Our views on gross margin there have not really changed. We do not break out the spacecraft gross margin. Spacecraft solutions include Blue Ghost, ELECTRA, and also our software solutions business. Operator: Thank you. This will conclude our Q&A session. I will pass the call back to Michael for closing comments. Michael Sheetz: Thank you, everyone, for attending today’s call. We look forward to speaking with you again when we report our next quarter’s financial results. Thanks all. Operator: This concludes our conference. Thank you for participating, and you may now disconnect. Before you buy stock in Firefly Aerospace, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Firefly Aerospace wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $496,473!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,216,605!* Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 968% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 202% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 4, 2026. This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. FLY Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript was originally published by The Motley Fool

Investor releaseQuarter not tagged2026-05-05

Firefly Stock Was Soaring After Earnings. Why the Gains Didn’t Last.

Barrons.com

FEATURE The space business is growing. Shares of Firefly Aerospace rocketed higher initially after the space technology company reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Gains, however, didn’t last.

As of 2026-08-15 • Updated weeklySource: Earnings sourceIngestion runbook