KVH Industries, Inc. (KVHI) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Thank you. Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Q2 2026 KVH Industries, Inc. earnings conference call. This time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press star one one on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press star one one again. Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Anthony Pike, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today for KVH Industries' second quarter results, which are included in the earnings release we published earlier this morning. Joining me on the call is the company's Chief Executive Officer, Brandon Bruin. A copy of the earnings release was filed with the SEC under Form 8K this morning. And a copy of the release, along with a recording of today's call, will be available on our website at ir.kvh.com. This conference call contains certain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in these statements. Words such as expect, may, intend, anticipate, will and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements which include projections, plans, initiatives and other future events. We undertake no obligation to update these statements, and you should review the cautionary statements in our most recently filed Form 10-K under the heading Risk Factors. We will also discuss adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, and our press release defines this term and reconciles it to GAAP net income or loss. Brent? Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us.

Over the last two quarterly calls, I have spoken about the momentum behind our transition to LEO-based connectivity. I'm pleased to say the momentum has continued through the second quarter, and our results demonstrate that we are executing well against our strategy. We are seeing strong demand for our solutions, continued growth in our recurring revenue base, and encouraging progress across several of our strategic initiatives. Total revenue for the second quarter was $33.7 million, an increase of $1.4 million, or 4%, sequentially from the first quarter, and up 27% from a year ago. Service revenue reached $29.7 million, increasing 6% sequentially and 29% year over year. This growth reflects the continued expansion of our subscriber base and reinforces the strength of a recurring revenue model. During the quarter, we shipped approximately 2,500 communication terminals. While below the record shipment level we achieved in the first quarter, this represents another quarter of strong demand and continues to support future subscriber growth. We ended the quarter with approximately 10,700 subscribing vessels, adding more than 1,000 net vessels during the quarter. That trend reflects the value customers see in our approach. Growth in LEO service sales driven by Starlink remains our fastest growing segment. Not every company in our space has navigated the shift successfully. We have and the results show it. One of the most significant developments this quarter was the introduction of our new multi-network service plans. These plans give customers flexibility to subscribe to a block of data delivered across Starlink, OneWeb, or VSAT, depending on their needs. This is a key milestone in simplifying connectivity for our customers while giving them greater flexibility to take advantage of multiple satellite networks. The LINK content platform continues to expand. The new LINK streaming service is now undergoing beta trials, and we expect to launch it very soon. This next phase expands the value of the platform by delivering streamed entertainment content that further enhances crew welfare and the onboard experience. Turning to our managed IT service offering, we're making progress converting early customer evaluations into ongoing commercial relationships. And we expect to see this reflected in our recurring revenue stream over the coming months. While still early, we're encouraged by the direction of these conversions and we look to expand our role beyond connectivity and deliver broader technology solutions for our In parallel, our land-based Starlink initiative continues to expand. We ended the quarter with approximately 1,600 sites, an increase of approximately 500 during the quarter. It's further evidence of the demand of our managed connectivity solutions beyond the maritime market and broadens our recurring revenue bill. business model. Geographic expansion remains a priority. During the quarter, we strengthened our presence in Latin America by adding a dedicated regional sales leader and expanded our team in Athens, Greece, further enhancing our ability to support customers across Europe and surrounding markets. We also broadened our market reach by opening our first retail location in Fort Lauderdale. Alongside Starlink, the location offers a broad portfolio of communications equipment, including handheld devices and other connectivity solutions. It gives us a new channel to serve both commercial and recreational maritime customers while expanding our presence in an important maritime hub. So what did we do in the second quarter? continued revenue growth approximately 10,700 subscribing vessels the successful introduction of multi network service plans Link streaming enter beta trials our first cyber security pilot engagements solid growth in our land-based Starlink industry initiative, continued investment in our global footprint, and the opening of our first retail location. The transformation of KVH continues to gain momentum. We remain focused on disciplined execution, delivering innovative solutions for our customers, expanding our recurring revenue base, and building long-term value as the communications market continues to transition to LEO-enabled connectivity. Thank you. And with that, I'll turn it over to Anthony. Thank you, Brent.

So with respect to our second quarter financial results, service growth gross profit was $10.6 million, which is an increase of $0.8 million from the first quarter. Service growth margin was 36%, which was up slightly from 35% in the prior quarter. Airtime depreciation expense, which is a non-cash charge, represented 7% of service revenue in both the second and first quarters, which impact of these gross margins. As Brent mentioned, total subscribing vessels at the end of Q2 were approximately 10,700, which is up 11% from the prior quarter. The Q2 operating expenses total $10.4 million compared to operating expenses of $9.7 million in the prior quarter. This increase was in line with expectations and included $0.2 million in severance costs related to individuals who left a business at the end of the second quarter. Our adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $3.0 million and capital expenditure for the quarter was $1.3 million. For $1.3 million in capital expenditures during the quarter, we would note the following items as either temporary in nature or non-cash. Not $0.4 million related to our ongoing ERP project and the fit out of our new US headquarters, which is now complete. The ERP project will be completed by the end of the year, and $0.2 million related to non-cash expenditure on VSAT antennas using our Agile rental programme, where the inventory has already been purchased in prior periods. This adjusted EBITDA and capital expenditure compares to $2.8 million and $2.6 million in the first quarter of 2026, respectively. Our ending cash balance of $57.7 million was down approximately $1.4 million from the beginning of the quarter. was primarily driven by $2.3 million in stock repurchases. Giving effect to repurchases made subsequent to quarter end, we expect to conclude our full $15 million authorisation within the current month. As a result, the program will then be complete. So overall, we are pleased with the second quarter's performance. As Brent stated, service revenue continues to grow and was up 6% compared to the first quarter of 2026 and 29% from the same quarter last year. We had another strong quarter for connectivity antenna shipments with over 2,500 units shipped. Subscribing connectivity vessels were up 11% quarter on quarter compared to a 7% increase in the first quarter. On a year-to-date basis, subscribing connectivity vessels have grown by 18%. We hope to build on this strong momentum in the second half of the year and remain very positive about the future. This concludes our prepared remarks and I will now turn the call over to the operator to open the line for the Q&A portion of this morning's call. Operator?.

Thank you. At this time, we will conduct the question and answer session. As a reminder, to ask a question, you will need to press star 1 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1 1 again. Our first question comes from the line of Caleb Henry of Quilty Space. Your line is now open.

Hey guys, thanks for the questions. First one is just on terminal shipments, the 2500 I think versus 3100 in the first quarter. Can you talk a little bit about what is driving the ups and downs there and what you see for.

the next couple quarters? Hi, Caleb. Good morning. As I indicated last quarter, the 3,100 was really a high watermark, we felt. Potentially, we'll match that or beat that at some point, but we realized at the time that that was a bit higher than what we expected. I think in the realm where we see now, which is about 25%. 500, we should be able to do somewhere in the 2000 to 3000 range on a go-forward basis, but that's hard to say as market dynamics are shifting constantly.

Okay, thank you. And then I noticed in the earnings statement, it seemed like a little bit more discussion I'm curious if you're seeing any customer patterns between who chooses Starlink, who chooses OneWeb, and then also who chooses VSAT, if there's any segmentation there or things that are noteworthy.

Yes, in regards to who chooses what, Starlink is definitely the dominating force as far as connectivity. Customers are still looking for redundancy of network. In particular cases, customers are looking to an alternative to Starlink, which would then be OneWeb. We, many of our vessels have two or more communication solutions on board. when we have customers that actually have all three on board, Starlink, OneWeb, and VSAT. We're still shipping VSATs. primarily in tandem with either a OneWeb or Starlink, and in some cases a OneWeb will be paired with a Starlink as well. So, I don't know, Anthony, do you have any more color to add there? Anthony Tauberman, And no, I think you covered it.

Okay, and for the geo VSAT terminals or for vehicles that have decided to discontinue using that service, do those VSATs tend to stay on the vessel or are they typically going silent?.

Sorry, are they being removed? Well, if they own it, I'm not sure what you're doing with it, if you're leaving it on board. it's an agile you know or rental program they're required to de-install it and ship it back to us.

Okay. And then last question from me, as far as geocapacity that has been already procured, can you give us a sense of the timeline for where that rolls off and if it has any material impact on gross margins going forward?.

Well, the geocapacity, we're in constant contact with SES. Previously, our contract obligations were with InfoSat. We still have thousands of VSAT terminals in the market, so I wouldn't necessarily say an immediate roll off of VSAT capacity. And we're just working with the provider to keep the service going as long as customers have a demand for it.