Ondas Q1 Earnings Call Highlights
Ondas (NASDAQ:ONDS) reported a sharp increase in first-quarter 2026 revenue and raised its full-year outlook, as management said demand grew across counter-drone, defense, surveillance and autonomous systems markets.
Chairman and CEO Eric Brock said the company generated $50.1 million in first-quarter revenue, representing tenfold growth from the prior year and more than 25% above the high end of its prior target. Brock said first-quarter revenue was roughly equal to the company’s revenue for all of 2025.
“Our plan is working,” Brock said, describing Ondas’ strategy as a “core plus strategic growth” plan aimed at building a global operating platform for unmanned and autonomous systems serving defense, security, industrial and critical infrastructure markets.
The company also raised its 2026 revenue target to at least $390 million, up from the $375 million outlook it provided seven weeks earlier. Brock said the updated target is supported by backlog of more than $450 million and a growing global customer pipeline.
Revenue Growth Driven by Defense and Counter-Drone Demand
Brock said revenue growth in the quarter was driven by strong performance in counter-drone and defense-related markets, with notable contributions from the Sentrycs Cyber Over RF platform and Iron Drone interceptor systems. He also pointed to upside from BIRD Aerosystems, citing rising demand for airborne missile defense and aircraft protection systems.
Chief Financial Officer Neil Laird said revenue rose 66% sequentially from the fourth quarter of 2025. Gross profit was $24.7 million, representing a 49% gross margin, compared with 35% a year earlier and 42% in the fourth quarter.
Operating expenses increased to $67.3 million, which Laird attributed primarily to investments in personnel and infrastructure to support Ondas’ operating platform, along with acquisition-related activity. Cash operating expenses were $36.9 million.
Ondas reported net income of $362.9 million for the quarter, driven by a $389.5 million non-cash gain tied to warrant accounting. Laird said certain warrants from the company’s October 2025 and January 2026 financings are classified as liabilities and marked to market each reporting period. He said the accounting treatment does not affect the company’s cash position or underlying operations.
Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $10.9 million, compared with a loss of $7.5 million in the prior-year period. Brock said the company achieved EBITDA profitability at the product-company level about two quarters ahead of its internal plan, while continuing to invest in leadership, infrastructure and go-to-market capabilities.
Backlog, Balance Sheet Expand After Acquisitions
Ondas ended the quarter with $1.48 billion in cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments, up from $616.1 million at the end of 2025. Laird said the company carries “virtually no debt” and described its balance sheet as a competitive advantage.
Following the April closings of the World View and Mistral acquisitions, Brock said backlog increased to more than $450 million. Oshri Lugassy, co-CEO of Ondas Autonomous Systems, later cited approximately $457 million in backlog and said it reflects demand across aerial security, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, unmanned ground vehicles and loitering munitions systems.
Lugassy said Ondas is active in more than 45 countries and has built a pipeline of about $4.3 billion in opportunities across more than 45 submissions globally. He said the United States and Europe account for the largest portions of the pipeline, at approximately $1.8 billion and more than $2 billion, respectively.
Management also highlighted recent growth at acquired businesses. Lugassy said Airobotics delivered approximately 260% year-over-year revenue growth in the first quarter, driven by Iron Drone and Optimus deliveries and a new border infrastructure program. He said Sentrycs captured $36 million in orders through April 1, exceeding the $30 million in revenue it generated during all of 2025. He also said 4M Defense captured $80 million in tender awards, with $25.8 million of initial orders.
World View and Palantir Partnership Shape ISR Strategy
Ondas completed its acquisition of World View on April 1. Ryan Hartman, World View’s president and CEO, said the company’s stratospheric balloon platform, Stratollite, is seeing increased demand from defense customers as persistent high-altitude surveillance becomes a more important part of multi-domain intelligence planning.
Hartman pointed to two recent missions: UNITAS in fall 2025, involving a maritime operating context for Smartronix and 4th Fleet under the Marlins contract, and Dorado in spring 2026, a 39-day Atlantic mission. He said those efforts led to ongoing engagement, advanced contracting discussions and active requests for proposals tied to potential work in SOUTHCOM and CENTCOM areas of responsibility.
Hartman also discussed SkyWeaver, which he described as Palantir’s Artificial Intelligence Platform deployed at the edge as an intelligence operating layer across Ondas’ platforms. He said SkyWeaver is intended to fuse sensor data from stratospheric, aerial and ground systems, automate parts of the intelligence cycle and deliver correlated intelligence into customers’ Palantir Foundry environments.
“This is the difference between a portfolio of platforms and an integrated intelligence system,” Hartman said. He added that initial integrations across the Ondas portfolio are targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026.
Management Says Strategic Growth Program Remains Central
Brock said Ondas’ strategic growth program is aimed at adding differentiated technologies, leadership teams, customer relationships and operational capabilities, not simply revenue. He said the company’s current acquisition pipeline represents more than $500 million in potential annualized revenue opportunity.
He also said Ondas estimates it has capacity to support more than $4.2 billion of merger-and-acquisition activity, assuming an approximate two-to-one equity-to-cash structure. Based on target acquisition multiples of 2.5 times to 4 times projected 2027 revenue, Brock said that could translate into $1 billion to $1.8 billion of incremental annualized revenue as capacity is deployed.
During the question-and-answer session, Brock said core growth remains strong and cited sequential revenue growth of 32.8% in the first quarter compared with the fourth quarter. Asked about gross margin strength, he said margins are likely to remain volatile quarter to quarter because of product mix and scaling needs, but added that integrated “systems of systems” offerings and more software content could support higher margins over time.
Brock said the company continues to target adjusted EBITDA margins of 25% to 30% over time, while emphasizing that near-term investment is focused on capturing market share. Ondas now expects Ondas Autonomous Systems to reach EBITDA profitability in the first quarter of 2027, six months earlier than its prior target.
“The objective is not to show massive profitability,” Brock said of the near term. “The objective of this is to capture those markets.”
About Ondas (NASDAQ:ONDS)
Ondas Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: ONDS) develops secure private wireless networking solutions and unmanned aircraft systems tailored to mission-critical industrial applications. Its Ondas Networks division offers the proprietary FullMAX platform, a long-range, high-bandwidth broadband network designed to support real-time data transmission, remote monitoring and IoT deployments across rail, maritime and infrastructure environments. The broadband platform integrates edge-to-cloud architecture to ensure operational resilience and regulatory compliance for transportation and utility operators.
The company's Ondas Autonomous Systems segment builds heavy-lift cargo drones and uncrewed aircraft platforms for logistics, pipeline and infrastructure inspection, emergency response and other government and commercial use cases.
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