Earnings

Liberty Energy Swings to a Loss as Adjusted EBITDA Falls

The Tip Desk · October 27, 2026 · 3 min read

Revenue reached $1.2 billion, up 26% from a year earlier, while Adjusted EBITDA was $142 million and the company posted a $39 million net loss.

Liberty Energy Inc. (LBRT), a North American completions and distributed-power services company, reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $1.2 billion, a 26% increase from $0.9 billion a year earlier, after a 14% year-over-year rise in the second quarter.

The sequential step-up in revenue growth did not carry through to profit. Adjusted EBITDA was $142 million, down 6% from $151 million in the second quarter after a sequential rise from $126 million in the first quarter. The company posted a net loss of $39 million, or $(0.24) a share, versus net income of $43 million, or $0.26 a share, in the second quarter. Adjusted net income was $10 million, or $0.06 a share.

Chief Executive Officer Ron Gusek said third-quarter revenue and Adjusted EBITDA reflected strong operational execution and modest price increases, partially offset by drilling-related delays and cost inflation. He said the completions trajectory had improved from early-year cyclical lows. Operating income was $19 million, compared with $13 million in the second quarter, while costs of services were $995 million.

The swing to a GAAP loss coincided with a $63 million loss on investments, net, in the three months ended September 30, 2026, versus a $43 million gain in the second quarter. Interest expense, net, was $5.9 million.

Liberty said it achieved record natural gas substitution of more than 60% of the fuel consumed by its frac fleets, which it said provided annualized fuel savings of more than $1 billion for customers, citing continued investment in natural-gas-fueled equipment and optimization through its digital intelligence layer.

Capital expenditures were $622 million in the third quarter, versus $221 million in the second quarter. Cash on hand was $119 million as of September 30, 2026, with total debt of about $1.3 billion, primarily senior convertible notes issued in the first quarter of 2026. Total liquidity, including availability under the credit facility, was approximately $669 million; the company had no drawn amount on the secured revolver except $30.2 million of letters of credit.

Liberty Power Innovations entered a strategic development agreement with a leading frontier AI lab and a dedicated infrastructure platform to deliver 1.2 GW of integrated power services at data center campuses. The agreement includes a significant prepayment of capacity fees and a targeted first energy service agreement of about 500 megawatts by December 2026, with a phased energization schedule from the fourth quarter of 2027 through the first quarter of 2029. The company also said it collaborated with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Laboratory of the Rockies at an advanced grid simulation testbed. The deal extended second-quarter announcements of a joint venture with PowerBridge LLC and a strategic alliance with SLB.

Gusek said the company sees opportunity to expand the relationship and is working on additional projects across other sites, including gas supply, interconnection, permitting and construction planning.

The board declared a cash dividend of $0.10 a share of Class A common stock, an 11% increase from the $0.09 paid in the third quarter, to be paid December 18, 2026. During the quarter ended September 30, 2026, Liberty paid about $15 million in aggregate dividends.

Looking ahead, the company said it expects fourth-quarter weather and holiday seasonality to be partially offset by continued strength in demand, including activity deferred from the third quarter. It said producer well economics had strengthened, with a more constructive forward curve, and that modestly higher completions activity had absorbed much of the industry’s available frac capacity.

More on LBRT

September 28, 2026 QBook Stronger demand supports expansion as pricing diverges

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