Foraco International Q1 2026 Earnings Report

Foraco International EPS Results

• Actual EPS: C$0.01
• Consensus EPS: N/A
• Beat/Miss: N/A
• One Year Ago EPS: N/A

Foraco International Revenue Results

• Actual Revenue: $92.11 million
• Expected Revenue: N/A
• Beat/Miss: N/A
• YoY Revenue Growth: N/A

Foraco International Announcement Details

• Quarter: Q1 2026
• Date: 4/30/2026
• Time: Before Market Opens
• Conference Call Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
• Conference Call Time: 9:00AM ET

Foraco International (TSE:FAR) is the business of providing mineral and water drilling services and hydraulic drilling. It specializes in drilling in harsh environments and isolated locations including desert, and mountainous regions. The principal sources of revenue consist of drilling contracts for companies involved in mining and water exploration. The group has its operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, North America, South America and the Asia Pacific.

Foraco International Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

Key Takeaways

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue increased to $66 million in Q1 from $55 million a year ago, driven by strong performance in Canada, the U.S. and South America, and management says a near-record order book provides strong forward visibility.
• Negative Sentiment: Gross margin fell to 10.7% (EBITDA stable at $7.4 million) as many contracts remain in mobilization/ramp-up, leaving margins below historical levels though management expects improvement over the next two quarters.
• Negative Sentiment: Working capital rose by $15 million and CapEx was $10 million to add five rigs, pushing net debt to $91 million; liquidity includes about $18 million of undrawn credit and management expects working capital to unwind by year-end.
• Positive Sentiment: Utilization improved through the quarter—averaging ~40% but exiting above 50%—with five rigs deployed and four more planned, and the company expects utilization to continue rising toward mid-70% potential (targeting ~60% this year).
• Neutral Sentiment: Management highlights strong industry fundamentals (high gold/copper prices, electrification, infrastructure and AI-related demand) and reiterates a disciplined, selective growth strategy focused on scalable long-term projects.

Presentation

[Operator]

Morning, welcome to Foraco International's Q1 2026 results conference call. All participants will be in a listen-only mode until the question-and-answer session. I will now turn the call over to Tim Bremner, Chief Executive Officer. Please go ahead.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thank you, Kelsey, good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today to discuss Foraco's results for the Q1 ending March 31, 2026. Joining me on the call is Fabien Sevestre, our Chief Financial Officer, who will walk you through the financial results and key drivers. Before we begin, please note that our comments today may include forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks and uncertainties. Turning to the quarter. As a reminder, Q1 is traditionally one of our weaker periods due to seasonality and the restart after the holiday break, which impacts activity across several of our regions. Revenue for the quarter was $66 million compared to $55 million in Q1 2025, reflecting strong growth in almost all countries, particularly in Canada, the U.S., and South America.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

While EBITDA remained stable at $7.4 million, margins were impacted by mobilization and ramp-up of new contracts, which is consistent with the early phase of a growth cycle. What is important is that we are clearly seeing the continuation of the demand inflection that began in the second half of 2025. This is supported by our robust order book, which remains near record levels and provides strong visibility going forward. Looking more broadly, the outlook for our industry remains very positive. We are operating in a market supported by near record metal prices for gold and copper, alongside strong demand across a wide range of other commodities. This demand is being driven not only by traditional drivers such as electrification and infrastructure, but also by structural forces including de-globalization, geopolitical uncertainty, and the rapid expansion of AI-related infrastructure. Against this backdrop, Foraco remains focused on disciplined growth.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

We are prioritizing scalable long-term projects while maintaining a selective approach to new opportunities. At the same time, we're continuing to prepare our fleet and strengthen our teams so that we're well-positioned to capitalize on further growth opportunities, particularly in the second half of 2026. With that, I'll turn the call over to Fabien for the financial review. Fabien.

[Fabien Sevestre, CFO at Foraco International]

Thank you, Tim, and good morning, everyone. As a reminder, Foraco reports in full IFRS and in US dollars. Revenue for Q1 2026 amounted to $66 million compared to $55 million for the same period last year, representing strong growth driven by new contracts. By geography, North America delivered strong performance with revenue of $25 million, up 39%, reflecting the ramp-up of new contracts in both Canada and the U.S. South America nearly doubled year-over-year, increasing by 98%, highlighting strong demand across the region. Asia Pacific revenue was $14 million, reflecting normal contract phasing. EMEA grew to $7 million, supported by ongoing contract ramp-ups. On the profitability standpoint, gross margin was $7.1 million or 10.7% of revenue compared to 14.1% last year. Some operations are still in ramp-up mode and have not yet reached target margins.

[Fabien Sevestre, CFO at Foraco International]

SG&A remained well controlled at $5 million or 8% of revenue. EBIT was $2 million compared to $3 million in Q1 2025, and EBITDA was stable at $7.4 million. Turning to the cash, working capital increased by $15 million as we supported higher activity levels. CapEx was $10 million during the quarter, primarily related to the addition of five new rigs and supporting equipment. This reflects our proactive approach to deliver the $4.4 million record order book released last quarter. Net debt increased to $91 million, which was expected given the working capital build and CapEx program. Importantly, we maintained solid liquidity with approximately $18 million of undrawn credit facilities. Overall, the financial performance in Q1 reflects a business in transition to higher activity levels. I will now turn the call back to Tim. Tim.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thanks, Fabien. Stepping back, the improvement in our Q1 year-over-year, combined with our record order book, reflects a business that is firmly in the early stages of a growth cycle supported by strong underlying market fundamentals. Demand remains robust, driven by strong gold and copper markets and broader commodity demand, supported by geopolitical dynamics, supply chain realignment, and increasing demand linked to energy transition and AI. As activity ramps up, our focus remains on execution and margin improvement. We will continue to take a disciplined approach to growth, focusing on scalable opportunities while remaining selective. We're investing in our fleet and our people, ensuring that we are well-positioned for the second half of 2026. At the same time, we're focusing on driving operational efficiencies that will support margin expansion as contracts mature.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

In closing, we started 2026 with strong visibility, a robust order book, and a clear strategy to deliver sustainable growth. Operator, we can now open the call for questions.

[Operator]

Thank you. First question comes from Frédérick Tremblay from Desjardins. Please go ahead.

[Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins]

Thank you. Good morning.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Morning, Fred.

[Fabien Sevestre, CFO at Foraco International]

Good morning.

[Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins]

On the, on the margin side, we saw EBITDA margin of 11% in Q1, which, you know, as you explained, is understandable given the ramp-up cost on new contracts. I was just wondering, as you look at your, you know, contract schedules and all that, when would you expect EBITDA margins to normalize back to historical levels of, say, 20% plus? Now, do you think we could see that as early as Q2, or is it more of a second half event?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Fred, EBITDA margins are improving, especially as we transition away from the ramp-up, which has impacted about 50% of our projects. As we move into the, you know, the more mature operating stage, we're seeing the margins improve. We expect that that improvement trend was going to continue over the next two quarters.

[Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins]

Okay, great. That's helpful. Just on the cash flow side as well, there was some cash deployment into working cap and CapEx to support growth in Q1. Is that sort of cash drag expected to continue in Q2, or was it more of a timing effect in Q1 that you'd expect would reverse in Q2?

[Fabien Sevestre, CFO at Foraco International]

In term of working capital, the increase will be reversed in cash before year-end. As we are increasing month after month, our activity until Q4. Working capital will be at high level until this date.

[Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins]

Okay. Just last question for me, just more of a clarification on utilization. There was a mention of 40% on average in Q1. Tim, can you maybe walk us through how that progressed in the quarter in January, February and March, roughly? If you could talk about where you exited Q1 in terms of utilization and sort of your broad view on that as we move into Q2.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Sure. As, as we, as we transition through Q1, we ended up over 50% at the, at the quarter. That is including the deployment of five new rigs, as you've seen, and we've got another four to deploy over the next quarter. We expect that the utilization rate is gonna continue to increase throughout the year. Just to remind everybody that, by our definition, the maximum utilization rate is somewhere around the mid-70%.

[Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins]

Great. Thanks for taking the questions and congrats on the quarter.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thanks, Fred.

[Operator]

Thank you. The next question comes from Donangelo Volpe from Beacon Securities. Please go ahead.

[Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities]

Hey, good morning, guys. Just to follow on the utilization rates, could you provide any commentary regarding where utilization rates are for the first month of Q2? Are we still confident in the ability to achieve a 60% utilization rate at some point of this year?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

You know, right now the utilization rates are over 50%. Some of our operations are moving into the winter season, specifically high altitude projects, that's going to be offset by, you know, increased demand in other parts of the world. As I mentioned, we're expecting the utilization rate to increase over the next two quarters. You know, I think I mentioned in my comments that we're continuing to prepare people and equipment to hopefully take that up one more level in the second half of the year.

[Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities]

Okay. Thank you. Just looking at the workforce, it was about a 16% year-over-year increase. Just curious if you guys are still ramping up hiring and recruiting and how the labor dynamics are looking right now.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

We're continuing to recruit, as is everybody else. There's no question that labor markets are tighter than they were. That's not the case everywhere. There are certain markets that are better than others. Again, in Latin America, for example, high altitude projects are ending. That is gonna free up some labor. Generally speaking, we're managing to crew all of our projects, but we're recognizing that it takes a little bit longer, that's why we're being very careful not to over-commit and field rigs that are only partially crewed, because that doesn't work very well for everybody. That's the careful approach and the disciplined approach that we're taking to crewing and finding the right people.

[Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities]

Okay. Thanks for the color there. Just pivoting over to the CapEx, I think it was about $10 million for the quarter. Just anything in particular you'd like to point out, or should we be expecting elevated CapEx levels compared to last year's level for the remainder of the year?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

The CapEx for the Q1 was pretty strong. The CapEx is in line with the increase in the top line that we expect. As the business continues to grow, we're going to continue to invest in equipment that, you know, is first-rate technology. Don't forget that some of that is maintenance CapEx as we field some of the rigs that are in need of a complete and full robust overhaul. That includes part of it. As the business continues to grow, we're going to maintain a stronger CapEx, but always within reason.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

As I said, any new opportunity, we analyze that with respect to making certain that we have the correct return on investment on a project, especially long-term projects, before we do any investment in CapEx. We do not do any speculative investment on equipment.

[Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities]

Okay. Thank you. Final one from me, and then I'll pass the line. Just curious on how much of the revenue was for this quarter was driven from new work versus like realization from the existing backlog that was announced at the end of at the end of 2025.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

About 50%.

[Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities]

Okay. Thank you. I'll pass the line.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thanks, Donangelo.

[Operator]

Thank you. As a reminder, if you have any questions, please press star 1. Next question comes from Stephen Green from Ord Minnett. Please go ahead.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

Morning. Morning, Tim. How are you?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Hi, Stephen.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

How's it going? I was curious. I noticed the debt went up a little bit. Is the priority gonna be getting the debt going back down at, by the end of the year?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Yes. I mean, our capital allocation policy has not changed, Stephen Green. That is the top priority is debt reduction.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

I was wondering, where is growth coming from right now? Is some growth coming from the U.S. operations? I know you guys were penetrating that market, and hopefully you're getting some new contracts there.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Um, broadly-

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

Yes.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Stephen, growth is coming from everywhere. I mean, we gave some specifics on Latin America. You can see that there's a rebound in the growth in North America as well. It's virtually coming from all of the jurisdictions that we're working in. Some are recovering more quickly. The others will come in Q2, Q3. We're getting growth everywhere.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

Including the U.S., though?

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Yes. Yes.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

Great. Thanks again. I appreciate everything you do.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thanks a lot, Stephen.

[Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett]

Thanks.

[Operator]

Thank you. We have no further questions. I'll turn the call back over to Tim Bremner for closing remarks.

[Tim Bremner, CEO at Foraco International]

Thanks, Kelsey. Thank you everyone for participating in our Q1 conference call. We sincerely appreciate your interest, and we look forward to speaking to you at the end of July for Q2. Have a good day.

[Operator]

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes your conference call for today. We thank you for participating, and we ask that you please disconnect your lines.

Participants

Executives

• Fabien Sevestre, CFO
• Tim Bremner, CEO

Analysts

• Donangelo Volpe, Analyst at Beacon Securities
• Frédérick Tremblay, Analyst at Desjardins
• Stephen Green, Private Wealth Adviser at Ord Minnett