ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
Space42, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange-listed space technology company, reported a 31% year-on-year increase in net profit to $49 million for the first nine months of 2026, compared with $38 million in the corresponding period last year.
The company's net profit margin improved to 12% from 10%, according to its financial results announced on Thursday.
Revenue increased 11% to $404 million during the nine-month period, compared with $363 million a year earlier, supported by double-digit growth across its Space Services and Smart Solutions businesses.
Normalised earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 30% to $194 million from $149 million, with the margin improving to 48% from 41%.
Adjusted EBITDA increased 25% to $194 million from $155 million, while normalised net profit rose 52% to $50 million from $33 million in the corresponding period last year.
Space Services, the company's largest business, recorded an 11% increase in revenue to $340 million from $307 million, accounting for approximately 84% of group revenue.
The growth was supported by government contracts, including the $700 million, 15-year Thuraya-4 capacity services agreement, which commenced on July 1, 2025.
Smart Solutions reported a 16% increase in revenue to $64 million from $55 million, driven by higher government demand for geospatial intelligence and situational awareness services.
The Space Services business generated normalised EBITDA of $201 million, compared with $194 million a year earlier, with a margin of 59%.
Smart Solutions reduced its normalised EBITDA loss to $6 million from $44 million in the corresponding period last year, reflecting improved operating performance.
Space42's cash and short-term deposits increased 31% to $1.306 billion as of September 30, 2026, compared with $995 million at the end of December 2025.
The company reported negative net debt of $747 million, indicating that its cash holdings exceeded borrowings on a net basis, while its net leverage ratio stood at minus 2.8 times.
Total assets increased 10% to $4.025 billion from $3.656 billion at the end of 2025, while total equity rose 2% to $1.823 billion from $1.781 billion.
Borrowings increased to $559 million from $268 million, reflecting financing drawdowns for the Al Yah 4 and Al Yah 5 satellite programme, partially offset by debt repayments.
Capital expenditure during the nine-month period amounted to $134 million.
The company's contracted future revenue stood at $6.2 billion as of September 30, with approximately 97% attributable to Space Services. The contracted revenue represents about 11 times the company's full-year 2025 revenue.
Space42 also reported progress in its share buyback programme, launched in August 2026, under which it is authorised to repurchase up to 2.5% of its issued share capital, equivalent to approximately 119 million shares.
About 37% of the programme had been completed, with Dh90.4 million deployed.
The company said the buyback reflected its confidence in long-term growth and its view that the prevailing share price did not fully reflect the intrinsic value of its business.