nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Releases Earnings Results

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.12, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $80.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.14 million. nLight had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a negative return on equity of 5.17%. The company’s revenue was up 55.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.04) earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from nLight’s conference call:

• Q1 beat expectations: Total revenue was $80.2M (+55% YoY) with A&D revenue of $51.1M (+69% YoY), record product gross margin (~44%) and record adjusted EBITDA of $13.9M, plus positive operating cash flow.
• HADES launch: The company introduced a production-ready, scalable coherent-beam-combined (CBC) laser portfolio with integrated atmospheric correction designed to scale to hundreds of kilowatts and underpins the 1 MW HELSI-2 effort (on track).
• Balance sheet strengthened: Raised over $190M net in February and finished Q1 with ~$333M cash to fund a new 50,000 sq ft Longmont manufacturing facility, supply-chain investments, hiring, and product development.
• Near-term guidance and mix risks: Q2 guidance of $75M–$81M revenue (midpoint $78M), product gross margin guide of 37%–41% and adjusted EBITDA guide of $8M–$12M imply moderation from Q1 levels, while development-margin variability and exit from legacy cutting/welding could pressure short-term results.

nLight Price Performance

LASR traded up $7.72 on Friday, reaching $73.91. 3,786,882 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,104,756. The stock has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a PE ratio of -246.36 and a beta of 2.34. nLight has a twelve month low of $10.55 and a twelve month high of $86.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $65.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LASR shares. Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of nLight in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. William Blair started coverage on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of nLight from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.81.

Key Headlines Impacting nLight

Here are the key news stories impacting nLight this week:

• Positive Sentiment: nLight posted Q1 EPS of $0.20 versus the $0.08 consensus estimate, while revenue of $80.18 million topped expectations and rose 55.2% year over year, signaling much stronger demand for its laser products. nLIGHT, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: The company also issued Q2 revenue guidance of $75 million to $81 million, above the Street’s estimate, which suggests momentum may continue into the next quarter. nLIGHT, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management said results were driven by strength in aerospace and defense, and the launch of the new HADES directed-energy product line adds another growth catalyst tied to military demand. nLIGHT, Inc. Launches HADES™ Line of Directed Energy Products
• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target on LASR to $80 from $70 and reiterated a buy rating, reinforcing bullish analyst sentiment after the earnings report. Benzinga report
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional coverage highlighted the company’s Q1 outperformance and defense-demand momentum, but did not add materially new fundamentals beyond the earnings release. nLight (LASR) Q1 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates

Insider Buying and Selling at nLight

In related news, CAO James Nias sold 3,249 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total transaction of $201,308.04. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 95,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,930,005.72. The trade was a 3.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 32,239 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total transaction of $1,997,528.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,252,781 shares in the company, valued at $139,582,310.76. The trade was a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 130,780 shares of company stock valued at $8,032,729. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On nLight

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in nLight during the fourth quarter worth about $254,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in nLight by 7,142.9% during the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in nLight by 32.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,399,229 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,485,000 after acquiring an additional 341,948 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new position in nLight during the fourth quarter worth about $353,000. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC boosted its position in nLight by 176.5% during the fourth quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 30,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,175,000 after acquiring an additional 19,544 shares during the last quarter. 83.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

nLight Company Profile

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.