- Iridium has posted double-digit service revenue growth after the Aireon deal
- The company’s EMSS work for the Space Force will continue into 2027
- Total billable subscribers neared 2.7 million
Iridium Communications reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $245.7 million, up 8 percent from the $226.9 million it generated in the same quarter last year.
The company said Tuesday its service revenue climbed 13 percent year over year to $187.5 million, largely as a result of its acquisition of Aireon, and accounted for 76 percent of quarterly revenue.
Where Does Rocket Lab’s Acquisition of Iridium Stand?
Iridium stockholders approved Rocket Lab’s acquisition of the company during a Sept. 24 meeting, where the deal drew support from 99.6 percent of the ballots submitted. Those supporting votes accounted for 81.4 percent of the company’s common shares eligible to vote.
Rocket Lab agreed in June to buy Iridium in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $8 billion. Under the agreement, Iridium stockholders will receive $54 per share, consisting of $27 in cash and Rocket Lab common stock. The companies expect to complete the transaction by mid-2027, pending the remaining regulatory approvals and closing conditions.
Matt Desch, CEO of Iridium and a 12-time Wash100 awardee, called the stockholder vote a key step toward forming a next-generation space company.
“The combination of these two leading space companies will unlock new innovation in the space industry and accelerate our growth in critical space-based missions,” Desch said.
How Did Iridium’s US Government Business Perform?
Iridium’s U.S. government service revenue rose 2 percent to $27.6 million in the third quarter, driven by higher contractual rates under the company’s Enhanced Mobile Satellite Services, or EMSS, contract.
The U.S. Space Force exercised an option on Sept. 11, extending the EMSS contract through March 2027 at the existing rate. Iridium said it anticipates a renewal of the agreement in 2027.
The U.S. government remained Iridium’s largest single customer, accounting for 15 percent of service revenue and nearly all of the company’s engineering and support business. Government engineering and support revenue reached $38.9 million, up 1 percent from the prior-year period.
Iridium closed the quarter with 121,000 government subscribers, compared with 124,000 a year earlier. Government Internet of Things, or IoT, data users made up 77,000 of that total as of Sept. 30.
What Are Iridium’s Other Q3 Financial Results?
Iridium posted net income of $106.9 million, or $0.98 per diluted share, compared with $37.1 million, or $0.35 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2025. The company said the increase came mostly from a $103.9 million gain tied to the Aireon acquisition.
Operational earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or OEBITDA, dipped to $135.6 million from $136.6 million a year earlier. Iridium said the change partly reflected $4.5 million in additional expenses after it moved to pay annual incentive compensation entirely in cash.
Commercial service generated $159.9 million, a 16 percent increase the company also attributed mainly to Aireon. The segment represented 65 percent of total revenue for the period.
Within that segment, hosted payload and other data service revenue jumped 121 percent to $41.4 million. Since Iridium closed the Aireon purchase on July 2, the category has included revenue from the company’s space-based air traffic surveillance system and related data services.
Subscriber equipment revenue decreased to $19 million from $21.5 million a year earlier, while engineering and support revenue fell to $39.2 million from $40.2 million.
Total billable subscribers grew 6 percent year over year to 2.69 million, led by commercial IoT, compared with 2.54 million a year earlier and 2.63 million at the end of the second quarter. Commercial IoT data subscribers rose 9 percent to 2.16 million.
The company spent $27.4 million on capital expenditures during the quarter, including $2.2 million in capitalized interest. Iridium ended the period with $97.9 million in cash and cash equivalents, $2.2 billion in gross debt and $2.1 billion in net debt, putting its net leverage at 4.2 times trailing 12-month OEBITDA.
Iridium paid a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share on Sept. 30, totaling $16.3 million. The company’s board plans to raise the quarterly dividend to $0.16 per share beginning with the fourth-quarter payout, which would lift the full-year dividend by 5.2 percent.
