Intuitive Machines NASDAQ: LUNR reported what executives described as the strongest quarter in the company’s history, citing record revenue, record backlog and positive adjusted EBITDA as the space infrastructure company integrates recent acquisitions and pursues new civil, commercial and national security opportunities.
On the company’s first-quarter 2026 earnings call, Chief Executive Officer Steve Altemus said Intuitive Machines delivered $187 million in revenue, generated more than $30 million of gross margin and ended the quarter with a record backlog of $1.1 billion. Chief Financial Officer Pete McGrath later specified first-quarter revenue of $186.7 million, approximately three times the level reported in the first quarter of 2025.
Altemus said the company’s revenue mix in the quarter was 35% commercial, 38% civil and 27% national security space, which he said reflects Intuitive Machines’ strategy to build a diversified space infrastructure business across multiple markets.
Backlog and Guidance
McGrath said backlog was supported by more than $400 million in new bookings during the quarter, led by the Space Development Agency Tranche 3 tracking layer award with L3Harris and the company’s fifth Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, lunar surface delivery mission. He said approximately 60% to 65% of the backlog is expected to convert to revenue in 2026, with the remaining 35% to 40% in 2027 and beyond.
The company maintained its full-year revenue outlook of $900 million to $1 billion and continued to expect positive adjusted EBITDA for the full year. McGrath said a “significant portion” of expected 2026 revenue is already supported by contracted backlog, while the company awaits additional award decisions in the coming weeks.
Gross profit rose to $30.1 million from $6.7 million in the prior-year period. McGrath said the improvement was driven by the company’s satellite business and higher-margin service revenue, including Near Space Network Services, or NSNS. Adjusted EBITDA was positive $2.7 million, compared with negative $6.6 million a year earlier.
Operating loss widened to $39.2 million from $10.1 million in the first quarter of 2025. McGrath attributed the loss to acquisition-related transaction and integration costs, amortization and continued investment in next-generation satellite capabilities. SG&A totaled $50.7 million, including $20 million of acquisition-related transaction and integration costs and $6.3 million tied to a share-based compensation grant related to the Lanteris acquisition.
Operating cash use was $54.8 million, while free cash flow was negative $64.6 million. McGrath said those figures included one-time acquisition costs, research and development spending, inventory pre-buy at Lanteris and capital expenditures tied primarily to the NSNS satellite constellation. The company ended the quarter with $232 million in cash after completing the Lanteris acquisition and a $175 million capital raise earlier in the year.
Acquisitions Expand Space Infrastructure Strategy
Altemus said the January acquisition of Lanteris was “immediately accretive” and has already helped Intuitive Machines win new business. He pointed to the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command’s selection of Intuitive Machines for the Andromeda indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract, a 10-year vehicle with an anticipated ceiling value of $6.24 billion. Under the contract, the company will compete to design and field next-generation space domain awareness capabilities for geosynchronous orbit.
Intuitive Machines also announced a definitive agreement to acquire Goonhilly Earth Station and its U.S.-based subsidiary, COMSAT. Altemus said the transaction, expected to close in the third quarter subject to customary conditions and regulatory approvals, would expand the company’s ground station capacity in the United Kingdom and the United States and strengthen its space-to-ground network for communications, data relay and positioning, navigation and timing.
During the question-and-answer portion of the call, Altemus said Goonhilly and COMSAT provide access to as many as 44 communication dishes capable of reaching out to 2 million kilometers, which he described as the edge of deep space. He said the acquisition gives Intuitive Machines in-house capability to support a global ground segment network and could help serve government, commercial and international customers.
Altemus said Goonhilly currently generates about $14 million in annual revenue, adding that the strategic value lies in coupling those assets with Intuitive Machines’ market opportunities. McGrath said the ground network also supports potential full-service opportunities, including tracking and data relay satellite services.
NASA Programs and Lunar Infrastructure
Executives repeatedly tied the company’s strategy to NASA’s Project Ignition framework, which Altemus said validates Intuitive Machines’ focus on building, connecting and operating space infrastructure. He said the framework supports the need for repeatable lunar delivery, persistent communications, mobility and other operational services.
Altemus said NASA’s Moon-based opportunity includes an expected $20 billion across the first two phases, including an increase in CLPS 1.0 from $2.6 billion to $4.2 billion. He said a $6 billion CLPS 2.0 IDIQ has also been added to support heavier cargo deliveries beyond 2028. The company is positioning its Nova-C lander as a production-line platform and expects its Nova-D and Super Nova lander variants to support heavier future deliveries.
Altemus said IM-3 entered vertical assembly during the quarter for an expected mission later this year, which is also expected to launch the company’s first lunar data relay satellite for NASA’s NSNS contract. He also said the company completed engine testing for IM-4, satisfying requirements for that mission and for IM-5, the CT-4 mission awarded in the first quarter.
The company is also pursuing NASA’s Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services program. Altemus said Intuitive Machines previously received a $30 million LTV award and has updated its proposal to align with NASA’s revised approach, which now contemplates crewed and uncrewed mobility systems. In response to analyst questions, he said NASA had indicated a possible May 22 award date for the restructured LTV procurement.
National Security and Satellite Manufacturing
Altemus said national security demand accelerated during the quarter through the SDA and Andromeda opportunities. He said Intuitive Machines is delivering SDA Tranche 1, producing Tranche 2 and was awarded Tranche 3 in the first quarter. The company also submitted an updated AMDT3 proposal for 18 to 45 spacecraft, with the first 18 expected to have an award decision in June, according to Altemus.
On the Andromeda program, Altemus said Intuitive Machines is currently in a design competition for a highly maneuverable geostationary orbit satellite. He said the company expects multiple satellites under the program but does not yet have specific order or replacement-cycle details because designs are not complete.
The company is also executing on its IM 1300 series spacecraft line. Altemus said SiriusXM-11 is complete and ready for transportation to the launch site, while EchoStar 25 completed on-orbit testing and is expected to be handed off to the customer by the end of the month.
Asked about the company’s Nebula orbital transfer vehicle, Altemus said it has passed critical design review with the customer and is awaiting a third phase involving full-scale development and flight. He said Intuitive Machines expects multiple copies of the vehicle could support national security space missions in geostationary and cislunar space.
Altemus closed the call by saying the first quarter was a strong start to the year and that the company expects continued execution and additional award decisions in the coming weeks.
About Intuitive Machines NASDAQ: LUNR
Intuitive Machines is a Houston, Texas–based aerospace company specializing in commercial lunar exploration and services. The firm develops end-to-end solutions for robotic missions to the Moon, providing spacecraft design, mission management, navigation, communications, and data services under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program.
Founded in 2013 by aerospace engineers Steve Altemus, Tim Crain and Kris Kimel, Intuitive Machines has grown from a small startup into one of the leading private entities pursuing lunar surface deliveries.
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