Planet Labs PBC (PL) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Access earnings results, analyst expectations, report, slides, earnings call, and transcript.
Overview
The earnings call reveals positive financial performance with a 10% YoY revenue growth, improved gross margins, and positive free cash flow. The backlog and RPOs have significantly increased, indicating strong future revenue visibility. Despite economic uncertainties and customer concentration risks, the company is focusing on larger customers and has a strong partnership with Anthropic. The Q&A section shows optimism about growth and minimal disruption from tariffs. Overall, the company's strategic initiatives and financial health suggest a positive outlook, likely resulting in a stock price increase of 2% to 8%.
Key Financial Performance
Revenue $66.3 million, representing approximately 10% year-over-year growth, driven by key wins with Defense & Intelligence customers and higher than expected usage by government accounts.
Non-GAAP Gross Margin 59%, up from 55% year-over-year, indicating improved efficiency and cost management.
Adjusted EBITDA Profit $1.2 million, representing the second sequential quarter of adjusted EBITDA profitability, primarily driven by revenue outperformance and disciplined operating expenses.
Cash Flow from Operating Activities $17.3 million, reflecting strong operational performance.
Free Cash Flow $8 million, marking the first quarter of positive free cash flow as a public company, a significant milestone for the company.
Remaining Performance Obligations (RPOs) Approximately $451.9 million, up 262% year-over-year, indicating strong future revenue visibility.
Backlog Approximately $527 million, up 140% year-over-year, providing good visibility to growth acceleration.
Customer Count 919 customers, lower on a sequential basis, reflecting a focus on large customers and a shift to serving smaller customers via the Planet Insights platform.
Net Dollar Retention Rate 103%, with winbacks at 104%, indicating strong customer loyalty and expansion.
Capital Expenditures Approximately $9.3 million, lower than expected due to timing of launch payments and procurements.
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Operating Highlights
Aircraft Detection Analytic Feed: Released a new product that automates detection of aircraft globally, combining AI advancements with high-frequency Earth scans.
Planet Insights Platform: Streamlined self-service purchasing for small customers, enhancing accessibility and scalability.
Defense & Intelligence Sector: Revenue grew over 20% year-over-year, driven by strong performance and an 8-figure ACV expansion contract with a European defense customer.
Civil Government Sector: Secured a $95 million contract for methane data with California's Air Resource Board, marking a significant market opportunity.
Commercial Sector: Slight revenue increase year-over-year, with a multi-year expansion contract signed with onX for outdoor navigation applications.
Free Cash Flow: Achieved first quarter of positive free cash flow at $8 million.
Adjusted EBITDA Profit: Reported $1.2 million in adjusted EBITDA profit, marking the second consecutive quarter of profitability.
Strategic Shift: Transitioning towards downstream solutions to capture a larger market share and enhance customer engagement.
Satellite Services Model: Re-architecting funding and monetization strategies for next-generation fleets, aligning offerings with market demand.
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Risk or Challenges
Geopolitical Risks: The changing geopolitical landscape, particularly due to the war in Ukraine, has heightened the demand for Planet's services, indicating potential risks associated with global instability.
Regulatory Risks: The expiration of the NICFI contract impacted revenue in the Civil Government sector, highlighting risks related to contract renewals and government funding.
Economic Uncertainties: The company acknowledges that it operates in an environment with multiple geopolitical and economic uncertainties, which could affect future performance.
Supply Chain Challenges: Increased costs of revenue were noted due to depreciation from satellites and costs related to partner solutions, indicating potential supply chain challenges.
Customer Concentration Risks: The decline in customer count reflects a strategic focus on larger customers, which may pose risks if these key accounts do not perform as expected.
Cash Flow Variability: While the company achieved positive free cash flow, it expects cash flow to vary quarter to quarter, indicating potential financial risks.
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Guidance & Outlook
Revenue Growth: Generated $66.3 million in revenue, representing approximately 10% year-over-year growth.
Gross Margin: Non-GAAP gross margin was 59%, up from 55% a year ago.
Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA profit came in at $1.2 million, marking the second sequential quarter of profitability.
Cash Flow: Achieved first-ever quarter of positive free cash flow at $8 million.
Backlog Growth: Backlog grew to over $0.5 billion, reinforcing the path to accelerating growth.
Strategic Initiatives: Focus on delivering integrated global insights via AI-enabled solutions and expanding satellite services offering.
Defense & Intelligence Sector Growth: Revenue from the Defense & Intelligence sector grew over 20% year-over-year.
Civil Government Sector Opportunities: Selected as primary subcontractor for California's $95 million Satellite Data Purchase Program.
Commercial Sector Stability: Revenue in the Commercial sector was up slightly year-over-year.
Q2 Revenue Guidance: Expecting revenue to be between $65 million and $67 million.
Q2 Gross Margin Guidance: Expect non-GAAP gross margin for the quarter to be between 56% and 57%.
Q2 Adjusted EBITDA Guidance: Expect adjusted EBITDA loss for Q2 to be between -$4 million and -$2 million.
Q2 Capital Expenditures Guidance: Planning for capital expenditures of approximately $17 million to $22 million.
Full Year Revenue Guidance: Expecting revenue for fiscal 2026 to be between $265 million and $280 million.
Full Year Gross Margin Guidance: Expect non-GAAP gross margin for fiscal 2026 to be between 55% to 57%.
Full Year Adjusted EBITDA Guidance: Expect adjusted EBITDA loss for fiscal 2026 to be in a range of -$12 million to -$7 million.
Full Year Capital Expenditures Guidance: Planning for capital expenditures of approximately $50 million to $65 million.
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Shareholder Return Plan
Free Cash Flow: $8 million in positive free cash flow, marking the first quarter of positive free cash flow as a public company.
Backlog: Approximately $527 million in backlog, up 140% year-over-year.
Remaining Performance Obligations (RPOs): Approximately $451.9 million in RPOs, up 262% year-over-year.
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Key Q&A
Q:What can you discuss about the partnership with Anthropic and the data needed for LLM?
A:We're excited about how foundation models can speed time to value for our customers. The partnership with Anthropic focuses on fine-tuning their models on our data, which is primarily limited satellite data. Exposing them to more satellite data should improve accuracy.
Q:How do we think about the working capital unwind over a multiyear period?
A:Working capital can be lumpy quarter-to-quarter due to big contracts. We're focused on operating the business towards EBITDA profitability and sustainable free cash flow.
Q:What drove the strong sequential growth in the quarter?
A:The revenue outperformance was driven by an excellent sales team performance, an 8-figure contract win, and strong progress on the JSAT contract.
Q:How repeatable are the European maritime deals and what does the pipeline look like?
A:The urgency for security in Europe is driving demand for our maritime solutions. We have a strong offering that partners rely on.
Q:Was there any disruption around deals due to tariffs?
A:There hasn't been any significant impact on our conversations due to tariffs.
Q:Can you walk us through some of the puts and takes on gross margin?
A:Working with partners can impact margins short-term, but we expect margins to stabilize back towards long-term targets.
Q:How exposed are you to NASA's budget cuts?
A:We're tracking the budget process and believe there are opportunities for us to help NASA do missions more efficiently.
Q:What is the outlook for the EOCL program?
A:We're tracking the budget process and have a strong relationship with the NRO and NGA. We see more opportunities than risks.
Q:Is the growth next year still expected to be at least double?
A:Our targets going forward are unchanged, and we see sustained and accelerated growth.
Q:What does a potential FY '25 CR mean for on-contract growth?
A:CRs tend to be stable as they continue the prior year's budget, but we are tracking opportunities and risks.
Q:Review of Unclear Management Responses
A:Management avoided giving a direct answer regarding the specifics of the EOCL program and its potential cuts, indicating that the situation is still in flux. Additionally, there was a lack of clarity on the exact impacts of NASA's budget cuts on specific programs.
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Earnings Word Cloud
The most frequently occurring keywords in this quarter's earning call
ACV expansion
AG Research
Air Resource
Aircraft Detection
Analytic Feed
BKG insight
Bank AG
Boyer Koontz
CEO Chairman
CEO Chairperson
CFO Palmer
California Air
California SDPP
California methane
Canfield Cantor
Cantor Fitzgerald
Capital Group
Capital Markets
Carbon Mapper
Civil Government
Inc Research
LLC Research
Palmer Poroner
Quilty
Research Division
Tanager
land use
leader government
service offering
solution satellite
PL Transcript
Planet Labs PBC (PL) Q3 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive12-11
The earnings call summary reveals strong demand for satellite services, a significant backlog, and positive financial metrics. Despite some uncertainties in project timelines, management's optimistic guidance and strategic partnerships, like with Google, suggest a positive outlook. The Q&A session highlighted confidence in meeting fiscal targets and scaling opportunities, further boosting sentiment. However, the lack of specific guidance on certain projects and potential sector pressures temper enthusiasm slightly. Overall, the sentiment leans positive, anticipating a modest stock price increase.
Planet Labs PBC (PL) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Unknown9-8
The earnings call presents a mixed outlook. While there is strong growth in the Defense & Intelligence sector and promising partnerships, the guidance for Q2 and full-year shows expected losses and lower margins. The Q&A highlights strong demand and strategic partnerships but lacks detailed guidance, leading to uncertainty. The positive backlog growth and strategic initiatives are countered by the negative outlook on EBITDA and capital expenditures, resulting in a neutral sentiment.
Planet Labs PBC (PL) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive6-5
The earnings call reveals positive financial performance with a 10% YoY revenue growth, improved gross margins, and positive free cash flow. The backlog and RPOs have significantly increased, indicating strong future revenue visibility. Despite economic uncertainties and customer concentration risks, the company is focusing on larger customers and has a strong partnership with Anthropic. The Q&A section shows optimism about growth and minimal disruption from tariffs. Overall, the company's strategic initiatives and financial health suggest a positive outlook, likely resulting in a stock price increase of 2% to 8%.
Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Positive3-22
The earnings call reveals strong financial performance with 11% YoY revenue growth and significant improvements in gross margin and EBITDA. The company's strategic plans, including AI partnerships and satellite service expansions, indicate promising future growth. Despite some concerns about CapEx and macroeconomic risks, the overall sentiment is positive, supported by a strong backlog and increasing RPOs. The market is likely to react positively to the first-ever adjusted EBITDA profitability and optimistic long-term outlook.
PL Slides
PL Report
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does this earnings call transcript come from?
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Who creates the AI Summary and Key Q&A highlights shown above the transcript?
They are generated by a specialized financial-language model trained exclusively on 15+ years of earnings transcripts. The model extracts financial figures, guidance, and tone with 97%+ accuracy and is regularly validated against human analysts. The full raw transcript always remains available for verification.
