MDA Space (TSX: MDA) (NYSE: MDA) reported its first-quarter 2026 financial results on Thursday. The company experienced strong year-over-year revenue growth across its three business segments, driven by higher volumes of work on commercial satellite constellations and robotics programs.
Execution and operational progress
During the first quarter, MDA Space generated $464.1 million in consolidated revenues, a 32.2% increase compared to the same period in 2025. This growth was heavily driven by the Satellite Systems business area, which saw revenues rise 41.0% year-over-year to $313.1 million, reflecting increased work volumes on the Telesat Lightspeed and Globalstar next-generation Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation programs. The Robotics & Space Operations segment also contributed to the growth, with revenues increasing 18.5% year-over-year to $91.6 million due to advancing volumes on the Canadarm3 program.
The company reported achieving several key milestones early in the year. “Equally evident was focused execution across the business with our first set of Globalstar satellites signed off and delivered to Florida for the upcoming launch, and the first shipments of our space-grade chips received for integration into MDA Aurora,” stated Mike Greenley, CEO of MDA Space.
Greenley also noted the company’s recent expansion into the U.S. public markets. “Our consistent performance reinforces our ability to deliver profitable growth while maintaining balance sheet strength to invest and expand, all of which contributed to a highly successful initial public offering and listing on the New York Stock Exchange”.
The company ended the quarter with a robust backlog of $3.7 billion. While this represents a decrease from the $4.8 billion backlog reported in Q1 2025, the company attributed the reduction to the strong conversion of its existing backlog into recognized revenue. Furthermore, MDA Space highlighted a $40 billion opportunity pipeline encompassing both commercial and government sector opportunities.
Financial outlook
Despite the surge in revenue, MDA Space reported a 10.0% year-over-year decrease in net income to $29.6 million. This drop was primarily driven by an increase in the amortization of intangible expenses connected to the acquisition of SatixFy Communications Ltd. in the third quarter of 2025. However, when adjusting for these expenses, adjusted net income actually increased 32.0% to $50.7 million.
For the full year 2026, MDA Space reaffirmed its financial outlook. The company anticipates total revenues between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion, representing roughly 10% growth at the mid-point of guidance. Adjusted EBITDA is targeted between $320 million and $370 million, maintaining an adjusted EBITDA margin of 18% to 20%. The company also expects to deploy between $225 million and $275 million in capital expenditures to support production expansion at its Montreal facility and ongoing investments in chip development.
Financial Metric (in millions of CAD) Q1 2026 Q1 2025 % Change Consolidated Revenues $464.1 $351.0 +32.2% Gross Profit $115.2 $79.7 +44.5% Adjusted EBITDA $90.6 $68.6 +32.1% Adjusted EBITDA Margin 19.5% 19.5% 0.0 pts Net Income $29.6 $32.9 -10.0%