Services revenue increased 9.1% to $94.3 million, representing 85% of total revenue of $110.8 million.Cash flow from operating activities increased 79% to $8.4 million.More than $27 million ARR for near term activation with the South African National Treasury contract.New President & Chief Financial Officer and Chief AI Officer, enhancing leadership team capability and experience for next phase of the business.

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., Aug. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Powerfleet, Inc. (“Powerfleet” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: AIOT), a global leader in the artificial intelligence of things (AIoT) software-as-a-service (SaaS) mobile asset industry, today reported its financial results for the first quarter ended June 30, 2026.

“Our results demonstrate continued momentum across growth, profitability, and cash generation. High-value services revenue increased 9.1%, representing 85% of total revenue. Gross margin increased to 55.2%, operating cash flow nearly doubled to $8.4 million, and free cash flow improved by $6.6 million year-over-year,” said Powerfleet CEO Steve Towe.

“Near-term demand under our South African National Treasury contract has accelerated significantly faster than anticipated, with vehicles ready for near-term installation now approximately seven times our original expectation. To support this rollout, we are reallocating resources and forgoing portions of projected non-strategic South African revenue. Our revised 2027 guidance reflects the timing mismatch between the non-strategic revenue we’re forgoing and the larger, higher-quality revenue we’re expecting from the contract. We expect the revenue CAGR from fiscal 2026 through fiscal 2028 to remain consistent with our prior expectations, with stronger growth in fiscal 2028 fueled by the ramp of the South Africa project. We anticipate annualized Q4’27 revenue of approximately $495 million, with adjusted EBITDA margins of approximately 27%,” Towe concluded.

Business Highlights

In excess of $27 million of ARR is expected for near term activation under the South African National Treasury contract, against original expectations of $20–30 million in ARR ramping over 18 to 24 months. Vehicles mandated for immediate deployment increased to over 70,000 — a 7x increase over the original expectation of approximately 10,000 at this stage of the program — and are expected to reach 80,000 to 90,000 over the next two quarters, against a total addressable fleet of 150,000 vehicles.Selected as vendor of choice by a European-headquartered global construction leader to expand its existing on-road deployment into premium AI video solutions, both on-the-road and in-the-yard, across 26 countries.Signed three $1 million+ revenue multi-product contracts with manufacturing, logistics, and automotive leaders, reinforcing the quality of Unity’s platform and portfolio.Increased AI video bookings 20% sequentially, driven by strong customer demand for Unity’s differentiated safety intelligence SaaS solutions.Strong cross-sell expansion quarter-over-quarter; 12 Fortune 500 customers expanded their on-site footprint and 10 broadened their AI video adoption in the quarter.

Results for First Quarter Fiscal 2027 Compared to First Quarter Fiscal 2026

Revenue increased 6.4% to $110.8 million.Services revenue increased 9.1% to $94.3 million.Gross margin increased to 55.2% from 54.2%.Net loss attributable to common stockholders improved 17.5% to $8.4 million; loss per share improved to $(0.06) from $(0.08).Adjusted EBITDA increased 6.9% to $21.5 million.Operating cash flow increased to $8.4 million from $4.7 million in the prior-year quarter, while continuing to invest in growth through capitalized software development costs of $4.1 million and capital expenditures of $4.9 million.Free cash flow improved $6.6 million year-over-year, to a net use of cash of $0.5 million from a net use of cash of $7.1 million in the prior-year quarter.

Leadership Additions

President and Chief Financial Officer. Paul Lalljie joins Powerfleet this week as President & Chief Financial Officer following a role as a strategic finance advisor to the Company in recent months. Mr. Lalljie brings 25 years of finance and technology leadership, including as both CFO and CEO of 2U and as CFO of Neustar. David Wilson will remain with the Company in a consulting capacity for several months to support a smooth transition. The Company thanks Mr. Wilson for his significant contribution and partnership through a period of extensive transformation. As President and CFO, Mr. Lalljie will combine financial leadership with a broader mandate around operating execution, capital allocation and the Company’s next phase of profitable growth.Chief AI Officer. Vishal Vallabha joins Powerfleet this week as Chief AI Officer following a role as a strategic AI advisor to the Company in recent months. Mr. Vallabha brings more than 20 years of experience as a senior technology and AI executive, including CTO and Chief Data/AI Officer roles at Freeman Company and Lumen Technologies, and most recently as Founding Partner and CTO at NexGen.ai, where he led AI-enabled transformation engagements for clients including Microsoft and Bain Capital.

Discussion of First Quarter Results

Revenue for the quarter totaled $110.8 million, a 6.4% increase from $104.1 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2026, driven by 9.1% growth in services revenue, which represented approximately 85% of total revenue.

South African revenue was approximately $1.6 million lower in the quarter, reflecting the early impact of the reprioritization in the South African business. In addition, $3.2 million of product revenue was delayed by a production constraint late in the quarter, affecting a single product line related to a compatibility issue with a new component. The Company identified the problem and the solution, and production is being restored. Importantly, underlying customer demand and orders remain intact, and the issue does not impact deployment of the South African National Treasury contract.

This is a discrete production and revenue-recognition timing issue, not a reflection of customer demand or a broader production constraint. Given the timing of the recovery, the Company anticipates that some associated Q2 revenue may shift into Q3, with the balance expected to be recaptured within the fiscal year.

Gross profit was $61.2 million, and gross margin expanded to 55.2% from 54.2% in the prior-year quarter, reflecting the continued shift in mix toward higher-margin services revenue.

Income from operations increased to $0.3 million, compared with an operating loss of $2.0 million in the prior-year quarter. GAAP net loss attributable to common stockholders improved to $8.4 million, or $(0.06) per basic and diluted share, from a net loss of $10.2 million, or $(0.08) per basic and diluted share, in the prior-year quarter.

Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure, was $21.5 million in the first quarter, a 7% increase from $20.1 million in the prior-year quarter. A reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA to GAAP net loss, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, is provided in the tables below.

Balance Sheet and Capital Resources

As of June 30, 2026, the Company’s total available liquidity was $62.7 million, comprising cash and cash equivalents of $32.8 million, and available borrowing capacity of $29.9 million under the Company’s existing revolving credit facilities. Total outstanding debt was $278.4 million, and net debt (net of cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash) was $241.7 million. Adjusted net debt-to-trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA ratio remained stable at 2.5x compared with fiscal 2026 year-end.

Financial Outlook

The Company is updating its full year fiscal 2027 guidance, reflecting the South African reprioritization:

Revenue is expected to range from $468 million to $473 million, representing approximately 6% year-over-year growth at the midpoint.Net loss is expected to range from $6 million to $8 million, with weighted-average fully diluted shares outstanding of approximately 134 million.Adjusted EBITDA is expected to range from $111 million to $114 million, representing approximately 16% year-over-year growth and a margin of approximately 24% at the midpoint.Free cash flow is expected to range from $20 million to $23 million, consistent with the revised adjusted EBITDA guidance.

Powerfleet provides guidance for adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow, which are non-GAAP financial measures. Powerfleet does not provide guidance for the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures or a reconciliation of each of these forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure because it is unable to predict, without unreasonable effort, the timing or amount of certain items that are included in the applicable GAAP financial measure but excluded from adjusted EBITDA and/or free cash flow. These items may include, among others, stock-based compensation, acquisition-related expenses, fair-value adjustments, restructuring charges and other non-recurring items. The variability of these items could have a significant impact on Powerfleet’s future GAAP financial results, and therefore, Powerfleet is unable to provide a reconciliation at this time.

INVESTOR CONFERENCE CALL AND BUSINESS UPDATE

Powerfleet management will hold a conference call on Monday, August 10, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time (5:30 a.m. Pacific time) to discuss results for the first quarter ended June 30, 2026, and provide a business update.

Date: Monday, August 10, 2026
Time: 8:30 a.m. Eastern time (5:30 a.m. Pacific time)
Toll Free: 888-506-0062
International: 973-528-0011
Participant Access Code: 417796

The conference call will be broadcast simultaneously and available for replay here. Additionally, both the webcast and accompanying slide presentation will be available via the investor section of Powerfleet’s website at ir.powerfleet.com.

USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

Management evaluates the financial performance of our business on a variety of key indicators, including non-GAAP measures of adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted EBITDA gross margin, adjusted net income per share, adjusted EBITDA leverage ratio, free cash flow, net debt and adjusted net debt. Reference to these non-GAAP measures should be considered in addition to results prepared under current accounting standards, but are not a substitute for, or superior to, GAAP results. These non-GAAP measures are provided to enhance investors’ overall understanding of Powerfleet’s current financial performance. Specifically, Powerfleet believes the non-GAAP measures provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses, gains and losses and fluctuations in currency rates that may not be indicative of its core operating results and business outlook. These non-GAAP measures are not measures of financial performance or liquidity under GAAP and, accordingly, should not be considered as an alternative to total revenues, net income, net income margin, gross margin, net income per share, net cash provided by operating activities or total debt as an indicator of operating performance or liquidity. Because Powerfleet’s method for calculating the non-GAAP measures may differ from other companies’ methods, the non-GAAP measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. A reconciliation of all non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided in Annex A titled “Non-GAAP Financial Measures,” including a description of these non-GAAP financial measures and the reasons why management uses these measures.

Powerfleet also presents an illustrative annualized revenue run-rate metric based on the ARR currently under contract and assuming full deployment of the South African National Treasury contract. This illustrative metric is not prepared in accordance with GAAP, is not intended to represent fiscal 2027 revenue guidance or a forecast of future revenue and should not be considered a substitute for GAAP revenue.

ABOUT POWERFLEET

Powerfleet (Nasdaq: AIOT; JSE: PWR) is a global leader in the artificial intelligence of things (AIoT) software-as-a-service (SaaS) mobile asset industry. With extensive experience, Powerfleet unifies business operations through the ingestion, harmonization, and integration of data, irrespective of source, and delivers actionable insights to help companies save lives, time, and money. Powerfleet’s ethos transcends our data ecosystem and commitment to innovation; our people-centric approach empowers our customers to realize impactful and sustained business improvement. The Company is headquartered in New Jersey, United States, with offices around the globe. Explore more at www.powerfleet.com. Powerfleet has a primary listing on The Nasdaq Global Market and a secondary listing on the Main Board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. Powerfleet’s actual results may differ from its expectations, estimates and projections and consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as “expect,” “estimate,” “project,” “budget,” “forecast,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “believes,” “predicts,” “potential,” “continue,” and similar expressions.

These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, our expectations with respect to our beliefs, plans, goals, objectives, expectations, anticipations, assumptions, estimates, intentions and future performance, as well as including our revised financial outlook and guidance for fiscal 2027 and the anticipated financial impacts of recent business combinations and acquisitions. Forward-looking statements involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be forward-looking statements. Most of these factors are outside our control and are difficult to predict. The risks and uncertainties referred to above include, but are not limited to, risks related to: (i) the possibility that we may not fully realize the anticipated benefits of our acquisitions and ongoing business transformation initiatives; (ii) significant losses, accumulated deficits and an inability to achieve or sustain profitability; (iii) future global economic, political and business conditions, including inflation, interest rate increases, foreign exchange instability, geopolitical conflicts, sanctions, export controls and the potential imposition of tariffs; (iv) the commercial, financial, reputational and regulatory risks to our business associated with operating across multiple geographies, including exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations and economic instability in certain emerging markets; (v) disruptions in our global supply chain, performance issues or failures by subcontractors, and reliance on a limited number of suppliers for critical components and services; (vi) the loss of any of our key customers, reductions in customer demand or purchasing levels, and reliance on third-party channel partner relationships, including telecommunication companies and regional distributors; (vii) changes in technology, products and customer expectations, which may be more rapid, costly or difficult to address, or less effective, than anticipated; (viii) risks associated with the deployment and use of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies, including operational, legal, regulatory and reputational risks arising from their development, use or outputs; (ix) potential breaches, disruptions or failures of our information technology systems, including risks that could impair operations, customer access to services, or vendor and customer relationships; (x) our inability to adequately protect our intellectual property rights or defend against third-party intellectual property claims; (xi) our ability to obtain additional capital to fund our operations; and (xii) such other factors as are set forth in the periodic reports filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including but not limited to those described under the heading “Risk Factors” in our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and any other filings made with the SEC from time to time, which are available via the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or anticipated by these forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release, and except as otherwise required by applicable securities law, we assume no obligation, nor do we intend to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

Powerfleet Investor Contacts
AIOTIRTeam@allianceadvisors.com

Powerfleet Media Contact
jonathan.bates@powerfleet.com 
 

Annex A: Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In order to assist readers of our consolidated financial statements in understanding the operating results that management uses to evaluate the business and for financial planning purposes, we present non-GAAP measures of organic revenue growth, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted net income/loss per share, adjusted EBITDA gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA products gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA services gross profit margin, non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios, adjusted operating expenses, free cash flow, net debt and adjusted net debt, and adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio as supplemental measures of our operating performance. We believe they provide useful information to our investors as they eliminate the impact of certain items that we do not consider indicative of our cash operations and ongoing operating performance. In addition, we use them as an integral part of our internal reporting to measure the performance and operating strength of our business.

We believe organic revenue growth, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted net income/loss per share, adjusted EBITDA gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA products gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA services gross profit margin, non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios, adjusted operating expenses, free cash flow, net debt and adjusted net debt, and adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio, are relevant and provide useful information frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties in their evaluation of the operating performance of companies similar to ours and are indicators of the operational strength of our business.

Organic revenue growth represents the year-over-year percentage change in revenue, excluding the impact of acquisitions. We believe organic revenue growth provides insight into the underlying performance of the Company’s existing operations by removing the effects of changes in the scope of consolidation. Adjusted EBITDA is equal to net loss attributable to common stockholders, excluding non-controlling interest, preferred stock dividend, interest expense (net), other income (net), income tax expense, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, foreign currency losses, restructuring-related expenses, derivative mark-to-market adjustment, acquisition-related expenses and integration-related expenses. Following a detailed review of relevant SEC guidance on disclosure of non-GAAP financial measures, we refined our definition of adjusted EBITDA by removing recognition of pre-October 1, 2024 contract assets (Fleet Complete). Comparative information has been adjusted to conform with the updated presentation. We believe adjusted EBITDA eliminates the uneven effect of considerable amounts of non-cash depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation and other items that might otherwise make comparisons of our ongoing business with prior periods more difficult and obscure trends in ongoing operations. We define adjusted EBITDA margin as adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of revenue. Adjusted net income/loss is equal to net loss excluding incremental intangible assets amortization expense as a result of business combinations, stock-based compensation (non-recurring/accelerated cost), foreign currency losses, restructuring-related expenses, derivative mark-to-market adjustment, acquisition-related expenses, integration-related expenses and inventory rationalization and other, net of tax. We define adjusted net income/loss per share as adjusted net income/loss divided by the weighted-average number of shares outstanding during the period. We believe adjusted net income/loss provides additional means of evaluating period-over-period operating performance by eliminating certain non-cash expenses and other items that might otherwise make comparisons of our ongoing business with prior periods more difficult and obscure trends in ongoing operations. We define adjusted EBITDA gross profit as gross profit excluding inventory rationalization and other and depreciation and amortization, and adjusted EBITDA gross profit margin as adjusted EBITDA gross profit as a percentage of revenues. Our adjusted EBITDA gross profit is a measure used by management in evaluating the business’s current operating performance by excluding the impact of prior historical costs of assets that are expensed systematically and allocated over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which may not be indicative of the current operating activity. We define non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios as selling, general and administrative expenses adjusted for restructuring-related expenses, acquisition-related expenses, integration-related expenses, depreciation and amortization, and stock-based compensation, and expressed as a percentage of total revenues. We define adjusted operating expenses as total operating expenses adjusted for acquisition-related expenses, integration-related expenses, stock-based compensation (non-recurring/accelerated cost) and restructuring-related expenses. We present non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios and adjusted operating expenses to provide a clearer view of our operating cost structure by excluding items that are not directly tied to ongoing business operations. Free cash flow is equal to net cash provided by operating activities, excluding proceeds from the sale of fixed assets, capitalized software development costs and capital expenditures. We present free cash flow because we believe it provides useful information to investors and others in understanding and evaluating the Company’s cash flows by providing detail of the amount of cash the Company generates or utilizes after accounting for all capital expenditures as well as costs that do not relate to our core business operations. We define adjusted net debt as total debt less cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, resulting in net debt less unsettled transaction costs. Adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio is calculated as adjusted net debt divided by adjusted EBITDA for the trailing 12-month period. We present adjusted net debt and adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio to help investors and others better understand our true leverage position and financial flexibility. Unsettled transaction costs – often related to acquisitions, integrations, or financing activities – can temporarily inflate net debt figures and obscure comparability across periods.

Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted net income/loss per share, adjusted EBITDA gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA products gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA services gross profit margin, non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios, adjusted operating expenses, free cash flow, net debt and adjusted net debt, and adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio are not intended to be performance measures that should be regarded as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, financial measures presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The way we measure adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted net income/loss per share, adjusted EBITDA gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA products gross profit margin, adjusted EBITDA services gross profit margin, non-GAAP selling, general and administrative expense ratios, adjusted operating expenses, free cash flow, net debt and adjusted net debt, and adjusted net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies.

A reconciliation of net loss attributable to common stockholders (the most directly comparable financial measure presented in accordance with GAAP) to adjusted EBITDA for the periods shown is presented below (in thousands and unaudited):

The following table (in thousands, except per share data, and unaudited) reconciles net loss to adjusted net income (loss) for the periods shown:

The following table (in thousands and unaudited) reconciles gross profit margins to adjusted EBITDA gross profit margins for the periods shown:

The following table (in thousands and unaudited) reconciles selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses to non-GAAP SG&A expenses for the periods shown:

The following table (in thousands and unaudited) reconciles total operating expenses to adjusted operating expenses for the periods shown:

The following table (in thousands and unaudited) reconciles net cash provided by operating activities to free cash flow for the periods shown:

The following table (in thousands and unaudited) reconciles total debt to adjusted net debt for the periods shown:

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SOURCE Powerfleet

Expands Highway Holdings into the Energy Storage Market, Creates a Platform for Shifting Towards a Product Business, while Extending its OEM business and  Increasing Factory Utilization

HONG KONG, Aug. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Highway Holdings Limited (Nasdaq: HIHO, the “Company” or “Highway Holdings”) today announced it has signed the master agreement contemplated by the letter of intent with Guangdong Huahu New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (“Huahu”) that was signed and announced on July 22, 2026. Highway Holdings expects to benefit from the joint venture’s anticipated sales and profit contribution, including from the new components business. Huahu is a China-based manufacturer of battery energy storage systems marketed under the Wowtiger brand.

The companies expect to officially form Huahu International New Energy Technology Company Limited, a Hong Kong joint venture company, within less than 30 days. The joint venture will combine Huahu’s established energy storage products and technology with Highway Holdings’ global manufacturing capabilities, European operating presence and international commercial relationships.

Highway Holdings will own 57% of the joint venture company, with Huahu owning the remaining 43%. The venture will be jointly managed by the two parties. The venture will market and distribute Huahu’s Wowtiger-branded energy storage products in designated international markets. The initial commercial focus will include Germany, Italy, the United States and designated South American markets. It will also evaluate additional markets and semi-knocked-down kit (“SKD”) manufacturing opportunities for Highway Holdings as the business develops.

The transaction gives Highway Holdings access to international battery energy storage systems (BESS) with the potential to generate revenue from product sales, distribution, SKD manufacturing and related services. It also creates opportunities to increase utilization across Highway Holdings’ existing manufacturing operations and diversify the Company beyond its traditional OEM business.

International Growth Platform

Huahu has developed an international customer base, initially serving commercial customers in Africa and Southeast Asia. Its fast growing market presence has also generated interest from prospective European customers seeking more technically demanding energy storage solutions.

The joint venture will use Highway Holdings’ European contacts and operations to support these opportunities through technical project management, customer service, warranty support, marketing and distribution. It also will pursue SKD manufacturing of Huahu products where commercially appropriate.

Highway Holdings believes its established European presence, manufacturing experience and reputation for dependable service will strengthen the Wowtiger brand’s position in mature markets where technical support, product availability and reliable warranty coverage are important purchasing considerations.

The venture will also pursue opportunities in the United States and designated South American markets. In the United States, one of the world’s largest potential energy storage markets, Highway Holdings intends to leverage its existing relationships and international operating experience to develop a distribution and marketing presence with manufacturing capability where appropriate. The Company may also evaluate financing alternatives to support larger international projects.

Transaction Terms

The Huahu International New Energy Technology Company Limited joint venture is expected to receive initial contributions valued at approximately $3.5 million, consisting of approximately $2.0 million in cash from Highway Holdings; and approximately $1.5 million in products and technology transferred by Huahu.  The joint venture will receive exclusive rights to market and distribute those products in Germany, Italy, the United States and designated South American markets, and intends to manufacture Huahu products through an SKD model. The transaction also includes performance-based equity incentives intended to align the parties’ long-term interests and encourage Huahu to direct additional manufacturing business to Highway Holdings. These incentives include: Up to 400,000 restricted Highway Holdings shares, 200,000 issuable upon the formation of the joint venture and another 200,000 upon the joint venture’s achievement of specified milestones in Europe.

Any shares issued to Huahu under these arrangements will be subject to a two-year transfer restriction and applicable performance conditions, corporate approvals and securities-law requirements.

Potential Expansion of Highway Holdings’ Core Manufacturing Business

Huahu purchases a variety of metal and plastic parts for the production of its products. The transaction is expected to transfer such purchases to Highway Holdings’ existing component-manufacturing factories. The business Huahu directs to Highway Holdings could provide meaningful and recurring production volume for the Company’s factories. The Company believes this additional volume has the potential to provide full capacity utilization, increase revenue and strengthen the earnings profile of Highway Holdings’ core OEM operations, bringing product manufacturing to Highway Holdings and at the same time also reviving its OEM business to a sustainable level.

Highway Holdings and Huahu will also collaborate on production improvements and the research and development of existing and next-generation energy storage products. This cooperation is expected to combine Huahu’s product expertise with Highway Holdings’ manufacturing capabilities, creating opportunities to improve product performance, production efficiency and speed to market.

Management Commentary

Roland Kohl, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Highway Holdings, commented:

“This transaction is another important step as it gives Highway Holdings an elevated entry in the fast growing battery energy storage market while advancing two of our highest strategic priorities: diversifying beyond traditional OEM cycles and increasing utilization across our manufacturing operations. Huahu brings proven products, established technology and demonstrated high international demand, while Highway Holdings contributes decades of manufacturing expertise, a strong European operating presence and access to global commercial and capital markets. Together, we believe these complementary capabilities will create a compelling foundation for profitable, long-term growth.

“We evaluated more than 20 potential acquisitions and partnerships before selecting this opportunity, reflecting the disciplined approach we have taken to identifying the right strategic fit. With the joint venture agreement now established, our focus is firmly on execution, as we work to expand international market access, secure larger projects, increase manufacturing volume and strengthen the underlying economics of our core OEM business. We believe this partnership can help both companies reach critical scale faster and create meaningful long-term value for both Huahu’s and Highway Holdings’ shareholders.”

A market survey for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) business predicts that the present worldwide market value for battery storage systems is about US$89 billion annually, and is expected to more than double and grow in the coming five years into an about US$198 billion market.

Mr. Liu, CEO of Huahu, commented, “We are delighted to have found a suitable international partner who can help us fully unlock our growth potential in international trade and advanced manufacturing. For any company, achieving solid growth is the best-case scenario, but growing too fast without the capacity to keep up is not beneficial. That is why we are very pleased to merge our interests with Highway Holdings. We believe that the Highway Holdings team is highly capable and well-positioned to provide us with multi-faceted support – including funding, technology, manufacturing, and international trade – which is exactly what we need at this time and in this place. We warmly welcome Highway Holdings to join our business, and together we will share responsibilities and reap the benefits.”

About Guangdong Huahu New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. and Wowtiger

Guangdong Huahu New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. is a China-based manufacturer of battery energy storage systems, inverters and related smart energy products marketed under the Wowtiger brand. The company serves international markets and offers energy storage solutions for residential and other applications. For more information, visit www.wowtigerenergy.com.

About Highway Holdings 

Highway Holdings is an international manufacturer of a wide variety of high-quality parts and products for blue chip equipment manufacturers based primarily in Germany. Highway Holdings’ administrative office is located in Hong Kong and its manufacturing facilities are located in Germany, Yangon, Myanmar and Shenzhen, China.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to the prospects of integrating the joint venture with Huahu, the business to be conducted by the newly formed joint venture, the resumption of operations of its Myanmar operations, and the economic, competitive, governmental, political and technological factors affecting the company’s revenues, operations, markets, products and prices, and other factors discussed in the company’s various filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including without limitation, the company’s annual reports on Form 20-F.

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SOURCE Highway Holdings Limited

Net sales increased 101%, Operating income increased 192%, Diluted EPS increased 258%
Raises Full-Year Outlook

Second Quarter 2026 Highlights
(All comparisons are year-over-year, unless otherwise noted)

Delivered record quarterly net sales and significant earnings growth as expanded capacity and improved execution accelerated backlog conversionNet sales increased 101.2% to a record $627.0 millionGross profit increased 84.3% to $152.5 millionOperating income increased 192.1% to 68.9 million, reflecting strong net sales growth, improved overhead leverage, and disciplined SG&A managementGAAP diluted EPS increased 257.9% to $0.68, Non-GAAP adjusted EPS increased 213.6% to $0.69Total backlog increased 98.0% year-over-year to $2.0 billion, remaining nearly double the prior-year level despite record quarterly net sales and significantly higher production ratesYear-to-date, operating cash flow improved to $55.0 million, compared with negative $31.0 million a year ago
 

Raises 2026 Outlook

2026 outlook now reflects net sales growth of 55%-60%, gross margins of approximately 25-26%, and SG&A as a percent of sales of 13%-14%, supported by strong backlog, expanded capacity, and improving operational execution

TULSA, Okla., Aug. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — AAON, INC. (NASDAQ-AAON), a leader in high-performing, energy-efficient HVAC solutions that bring long-term value to customers and owners, today announced its results for the second quarter of 2026.

“Our second quarter results demonstrate the continued strength of demand for our solutions and the progress we are making scaling the company to meet that demand,” said Matt Tobolski, President and CEO of AAON. “Net sales increased 101.2% to a fourth consecutive quarterly record, operating income increased 192.1%, and diluted EPS increased 257.9%, reflecting the power of higher throughput, strong backlog conversion, and continued execution across the business.

“The investments we have made in capacity, leadership, supply chain, and manufacturing infrastructure are translating into measurable operating progress. Production increased across the enterprise, lead times are improving in key areas, and we are converting backlog at a much faster pace while continuing to see strong customer engagement. This is clear evidence that the operating foundation we have been building is working.

“The long-term market opportunity remains compelling across both brands. The BASX brand continues to benefit from significant data center investment activity, a healthy customer pipeline, and strong engagement with strategic customers. The AAON brand continues to gain share despite a softer commercial HVAC market. Both businesses are well positioned, supported by differentiated products, highly engineered solutions, and strong customer relationships.

“We are also clear-eyed about the margin work ahead. The pace of growth and capacity ramp is creating near-term margin pressure, but the drivers are known, the actions are underway, and the path to improvement is clear: higher utilization, productivity improvements, sourcing initiatives, pricing actions, and a more favorable backlog profile. We are not simply growing revenue. We are building a stronger operating company with the scale, systems, and discipline to deliver improved margins, stronger cash generation, and durable earnings power over time.”

Second Quarter 2026 Results

Net sales for the second quarter of 2026 increased 101.2% to a record $627.0 million, compared with $311.6 million in the second quarter of 2025. Growth reflected strong demand across both the AAON and BASX brands, improved manufacturing throughput, and increased utilization of recently added production capacity.

BASX-branded sales grew 216.2% to a record $345 million, reflecting momentum in data center demand, higher production output, and greater utilization of recently added manufacturing capacity. AAON-branded sales also increased to a record level, growing 39.3% to $282.2 million, benefitting by a healthy backlog and continued progress in production throughput. Booking activity remained solid across both brands, contributing to market share gains and elevated backlog levels. BASX-branded products ended the quarter with backlog up 185.4%, while AAON‑branded backlog increased 9.4% from the prior-year period.

Gross profit increased 84.3% to $152.5 million, compared with $82.7 million in the second quarter of 2025. Gross profit margin was 24.3%, compared with 26.6% in the prior-year period. Results reflected the impact of ramping recently added manufacturing capacity, including the Memphis facility, the use of outsourced components to support accelerated growth, and inflationary cost pressures. These investments and actions supported substantially higher production levels and improved customer delivery performance during the quarter.

These costs are being addressed through a combination of pricing, sourcing, productivity, and operational initiatives. Management expects margin performance to improve as production volumes increase, recently added capacity utilization increases, and backlog with improved pricing converts to revenue.

Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percent of sales declined 570 basis points to 13.3%, reflecting continued operating leverage and disciplined cost management as revenue growth outpaced overhead investments.

Operating income increased 192.1% to $68.9 million, compared with $23.6 million in the prior-year period. Diluted earnings per share were $0.68, an increase of 257.9% from $0.19 in the second quarter of 2025. Adjusted non-GAAP EPS increased 213.6% to $0.69, which includes a $1.4 million infrequent expense related to an incentive fee associated with our Memphis, Tenn. facility,  net of the profit sharing and tax effect.

Backlog

Total backlog increased 98.0% year-over-year to $2.0 billion, compared to $995.3 million the prior year. Backlog remained nearly double the prior-year level even as the Company converted backlog into record quarterly revenue at significantly higher production rates. BASX-branded backlog increased 185.4% year-over-year, reflecting continued customer investment activity in data center infrastructure and the value customers place on BASX’s custom-engineered solutions. AAON-branded backlog increased 9.4% year-over-year, supported by strong order activity despite soft end-market conditions.

Compared to the first quarter of 2026, total backlog decreased 7.4%, primarily reflecting accelerated backlog conversion into record revenue and the inherent timing variability of large BASX project awards. We continue to see strong customer engagement and a healthy pipeline of opportunities across the data center market. As is typical with large, highly engineered projects, the timing of customer awards and order conversion can vary from quarter to quarter. We remain encouraged by the volume of opportunities under discussion and our position with key customers. AAON-branded backlog increased 6.0% sequentially, reflecting strong order activity and continued share gains despite a soft commercial HVAC market backdrop.

2026 Outlook

Based on strong backlog, accelerating production throughput, expanded capacity, and current expectations for customer project timing, we are updating our full-year 2026 outlook as follows:

“Our updated outlook reflects the strength of our backlog positions, continued customer activity across our end markets, and the significant progress we are making increasing throughput and converting backlog into revenue,” said Matt Tobolski. “At the same time, the revised gross margin outlook reflects the near-term cost of scaling rapidly while we bring new capacity to higher utilization and work through price-cost timing.

“The direction is clear. We expect sequential margin improvement in the second half of the year as higher production volumes, better utilization, pricing actions, sourcing initiatives, and continued operational discipline begin to show more clearly in reported results. We remain confident in the long-term earnings power of the business and believe the progress we are making today positions AAON for improved profitability and stronger cash generation as the year progresses.”

Segment Results

AAON Oklahoma

AAON Oklahoma generated net sales of $262.3 million, an increase of 41.7% from the prior-year period. Growth was driven by stronger execution against a robust backlog, supported by ongoing production improvements that accelerated backlog conversion. Performance also benefited from favorable price realization and a more normalized operating environment relative to the prior year, when the industry refrigerant transition and company-specific operational challenges weighed on results.

Gross profit increased 18.9% to $63.6 million compared with $53.5 million in the prior-year period. Gross margin was 24.3%, compared to 28.9% in the second quarter of 2025. Segment profitability was impacted by $18.1 million of overhead expenses associated with the Memphis facility, compared with $3.0 million in the prior-year period. Excluding these costs, segment margins expanded 70 basis points to 31.2%, compared to 30.5% in the prior-year period.

The year-over-year improvement excluding Memphis overhead reflects higher production rates, improved throughput, and favorable pricing, partially offset by elevated outsourcing levels and inflationary cost pressures. These pressures are being addressed through pricing and operational initiatives and are not expected to change the long-term margin profile of the segment.

AAON Coil Products

AAON Coil Products generated net sales of $146.7 million, an increase of 150.9% from the prior-year period. Growth was driven primarily by BASX-branded liquid cooling sales of $126.6 million, up 208.4% during the period.

Gross profit increased 130.1% to $23.5 million, compared with $10.2 million in the prior-year period. Gross margin was 16.0%, compared with 17.5% in the second quarter of 2025. Margin performance reflected inflationary cost pressures, outsourcing-related costs, freight pressure, and price-cost timing within the segment. These pressures were partially offset by improved labor efficiency, better overhead absorption, and higher production volume.

Management has clear visibility into the drivers and is taking action through pricing, sourcing, productivity, and operational discipline. While these actions are not yet fully reflected in the reported results, the Company expects the benefits to build through the second half of the year. Despite the margin pressure, AAON Coil Products delivered strong profit growth supported by higher sales volumes.

BASX

BASX segment generated net sales of $218.0 million and increase of 220.7% from the prior-year period. Growth was driven by strong backlog conversion, continued data center investment activity, and increased production capacity enabled by continued ramping of the Company’s manufacturing footprint, including Memphis.

Gross profit increased 244.2% to $65.3 million, compared with $19.0 million in the prior-year period. Gross margin was 30.0%, up from 27.9% in the second quarter of 2025. The year-over-year margin improvement reflected substantial volume growth, partially offset by incremental resources and investments required to support future growth, customer delivery, and continued share gains.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow

As of June 30, 2026, the Company had cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash of $12.7 million and a balance on its revolving credit facility of $435.0 million.

Andy Cheung, CFO and Treasurer, commented, “Our strong earnings performance and disciplined working capital initiatives have driven meaningful improvement in both financial leverage and operating cash flow generation through the first half of 2026. Operating cash flow totaled $55.0 million for the six-month period, a significant improvement compared with a $31.0 million use of cash in the first six months of 2025. As we move through the second half, we remain focused on productivity, margin improvement and working capital efficiency. These actions are expected to support stronger cash flow generation and continued balance sheet improvement over the long term.”  

Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call and webcast this afternoon at 5:00 p.m. EDT to discuss the second quarter of 2026 results and outlook. The conference call will be accessible via dial-in for those who wish to participate in Q&A as well as a listen-only webcast. The dial-in is accessible at 1-888-880-3330. To access the listen-only webcast, please register at https://app.webinar.net/8K3oQEbJrgq.  On the next business day following the call, a replay of the call will be available on the company’s website at https://aaon.com/investors.

About AAON

Founded in 1988, AAON is a global leader in HVAC solutions for commercial, industrial and data center indoor environments. The company’s industry-leading approach to designing and manufacturing highly configurable and custom-made equipment to meet exact needs creates a premier ownership experience with greater efficiency, performance and long-term value. Its highly engineered equipment is sold under the AAON and BASX brands. AAON is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where its world-class innovation center and testing lab allows AAON engineers to continuously push boundaries and advance the industry. For more information, please visit www.aaon.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “expects”, “anticipates”, “intends”, “plans”, “believes”, “seeks”, “estimates”, “should”, “will”, and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. We undertake no obligations to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important factors that could cause results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include (1) the timing and extent of changes in raw material and component prices, (2) the effects of fluctuations in the commercial/industrial new construction market, (3) the timing and extent of changes in interest rates, as well as other competitive factors during the year, and (4) general economic, market or business conditions. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking statements, see “Risk Factors” and “Forward Looking Statements” in AAON’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year, as may be revised and updated by AAON’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and AAON’s Current Reports on Form 8-K.

Contact Information

Joseph Mondillo
Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Strategy
Phone: (617) 877-6346
Email: joseph.mondillo@aaon.com

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement the Company’s consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), additional non-GAAP financial measures are provided and reconciled in the following tables. The Company believes that these non-GAAP financial measures, when considered together with the GAAP financial measures, provide information that is useful to investors in understanding period-over-period operating results. The Company believes that this non-GAAP financial measure enhances the ability of investors to analyze the Company’s business trends and operating performance as they are used by management to better understand operating performance. Since adjusted net income, adjusted net income per diluted share, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted EBITDA margin are non-GAAP measures and are susceptible to varying calculations, adjusted net income, adjusted net income per diluted share, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted EBITDA margin, as presented, may not be directly comparable with other similarly titled measures used by other companies.

Non-GAAP Adjusted Net Income

The Company defines non-GAAP adjusted net income as net income adjusted for any infrequent events, such as litigation settlements, net of profit sharing and tax effect, in the periods presented.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net income (GAAP) to non-GAAP adjusted net income for the periods indicated:

EBITDA

EBITDA (as defined below) is presented herein and reconciled from the GAAP measure of net income because of its wide acceptance by the investment community as a financial indicator of a company’s ability to internally fund operations. The Company defines EBITDA as net income, plus (1) depreciation and amortization, (2) interest expense (income), net and (3) income tax expense. EBITDA is not a measure of net income or cash flows as determined by GAAP. EBITDA margin is defined as EBITDA as a percentage of net sales.

The Company’s EBITDA measure provides additional information which may be used to better understand the Company’s operations. EBITDA is one of several metrics that the Company uses as a supplemental financial measurement in the evaluation of its business and should not be considered as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, net income, as an indicator of operating performance. Certain items excluded from EBITDA are significant components in understanding and assessing a Company’s financial performance. EBITDA, as used by the Company, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. The Company believes that EBITDA is a widely followed measure of operating performance and is one of many metrics used by the Company’s management team and by other users of the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Adjusted EBITDA is calculated as EBITDA adjusted by items in non-GAAP adjusted net income, above, except for taxes, as taxes are already excluded from EBITDA.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net income (GAAP) to EBITDA (non-GAAP) and Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) for the periods indicated:

Non-GAAP Adjusted Selling, General and Administrative Expenses

The following table provides a reconciliation of selling, general and administrative expenses (GAAP) to adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses (non-GAAP) for the periods indicated:

Non-GAAP Adjusted AAON Oklahoma Gross Profit

The following table provides a reconciliation of AAON Oklahoma gross profit (GAAP) to adjusted gross profit (non-GAAP) for the periods indicated:

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SOURCE AAON