nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.03 EPS

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.03, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $81.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $76.71 million. nLight had a negative return on equity of 17.11% and a negative net margin of 19.13%.The business’s revenue was up 71.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.30) EPS.

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

• nLIGHT reported strong 2025 results with full-year revenue of $261 million (up 32% YoY), record A&D revenue of $175 million (+60% YoY), gross margin expanding to ~30%, Adjusted EBITDA of $23.5 million, and positive operating cash flow—showing clear operating leverage.
• The company gave Q1 2026 guidance of $70M–$76M (midpoint $73M) with overall gross margin expected 27%–32% and Adjusted EBITDA of $5M–$10M, while noting development revenue should decline sequentially after the DE M-SHORAD delivery.
• nLIGHT completed a follow-on equity raise netting over $190 million, giving it more than a quarter-billion in cash to fund a new 50,000 sq ft Longmont manufacturing buildout, supply-chain investments, staffing, R&D, and opportunistic M&A.
• The company is exiting the cutting and welding markets, which it expects will create a ~$25 million–$30 million full-year revenue headwind (mostly gone by H2 2026) even as it transitions those resources to higher-priority A&D and advanced manufacturing areas.
• nLIGHT highlighted a robust A&D pipeline—including progress on HELSI-2 (a $171M 1 MW program), delivery of the 50 kW DE M-SHORAD laser weapon module, a $50M missile-sensing contract, new international customers, and expected further awards tied to the government’s Golden Dome priorities.

nLight Stock Performance

NASDAQ LASR traded down $6.76 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $56.19. 3,705,528 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,350,725. The company has a quick ratio of 4.36, a current ratio of 5.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.85 and a beta of 2.33. nLight has a 12-month low of $6.20 and a 12-month high of $62.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $45.98 and a 200 day moving average of $36.27.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LASR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of nLight from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of nLight to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of nLight from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of nLight from $48.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.36.

nLight News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting nLight this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target from $48 to $70 and assigned a “buy” rating, signaling confidence in continued revenue growth and implying ~24.6% upside from the current price. Needham Price Target Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target to $62.50 and moved to “overweight,” providing additional analyst support for the stock after the quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Price Target Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped expectations: EPS $0.14 vs. $0.11 consensus and revenue $81.2M vs. $76.7M; revenue rose ~71% year‑over‑year. Management also set Q1 revenue guidance ($70–$76M) above consensus, which supports near‑term growth expectations. Q4 Earnings & Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional interest: Bleakley Financial reported a new stake in nLight, indicating some institutional accumulation. Bleakley Stake
• Positive Sentiment: Management scheduled investor events and conferences in early March, increasing chances for deeper analyst/investor engagement and potentially clearer forward commentary. Investor Events
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually large options volume was reported, suggesting heightened speculative or hedging activity that can amplify intraday moves but is not itself a directional signal. Options Volume Note
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the beat and raised guidance, the stock dropped as investors appeared to take profits after recent gains and reacted to remaining profitability concerns (negative net margin and ROE noted in the report). Several outlets reported the stock “tumbled” after the release. Stock Reaction Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy intraday volume and elevated volatility accompanied the move lower, which can exacerbate declines and indicates short‑term positioning changes rather than a change in underlying fundamentals. Market Reaction & Volume

Insider Activity at nLight

In other news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 31,748 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.51, for a total transaction of $1,190,867.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,285,020 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $85,711,100.20. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 66,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total value of $2,399,844.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 196,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,126,855.68. This represents a 25.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 127,502 shares of company stock worth $4,622,166 in the last quarter. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in nLight by 1,599.1% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,727 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of nLight by 7,142.9% in the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new position in nLight in the third quarter valued at $41,000. Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in nLight in the second quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in nLight by 120.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 1,371 shares during the period. 83.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.