Arq, Inc. (ARQ) Earnings
Arq, Inc. is expected to report next earnings on August 10, 2026 (in NaN days), with a consensus EPS estimate of $0.01. ARQ has beaten EPS estimates in 4 of its last 8 reported quarters (average surprise -21.6% over the last four).
| Report date | EPS est | EPS actual | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 7, 2026 | $-0.02 | $-0.02 | +0.0% | $29M | +4.7% |
| Mar 10, 2026 | $-0.07 | $-0.07 | -2.2% | $29M | +2.9% |
| Nov 5, 2025 | $0.02 | $-0.02 | -200.0% | $35M | +22.7% |
| May 7, 2025 | $-0.03 | $0.00 | +115.9% | $27M | +8.1% |
| Mar 5, 2025 | $-0.03 | $-0.03 | +0.0% | $27M | -4.6% |
| Nov 7, 2024 | $0.04 | $0.04 | +14.3% | $35M | +22.7% |
| Mar 12, 2024 | $-0.08 | $0.10 | +225.0% | $28M | +4.1% |
| Nov 9, 2023 | $-0.11 | $-0.07 | +36.4% | $30M | +17.0% |
Source: company filings + earnings calendar. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Earnings call summary
Q1 FY2026 · May 7, 2026
AI summary of management’s prepared remarks and analyst Q&A. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Management highlights
• PAC Business: Effectively operates by selling furnace hours, with strong contract visibility (96% in 2026) and high customer retention. Technical capabilities and customer service drive loyalty. Customer mix has evolved from predominantly power generation to include other segments like municipal water and micropollutants. • GAC Business: Original design flaws led to pause in production. Testing showed modifications to thermal oxidizer wouldn't reach original production goals, so a pause was made to refine ROI. Also, Corbin facility has optionality for other products like asphalt emulsion, synthetic graphite and graphene, and rare earth minerals and critical elements. • Team Restructuring: Leadership changes made to upgrade talent, such as bringing in a new sales head with strategic selling experience and consulting an experienced operative to improve operations. • Financial Focus: Issued EBITDA guidance (17 - 20 million) due to increased transparency, redirecting furnace hours to profitable PAC business to improve near-term financial performance.
Guidance
• Issued EBITDA guidance range of 17 to 20 million for transparency and to reflect confidence in PAC turnaround. • Expect to generate at least 8 - 10 million of free cash flow. • Goal is to fund GAC ramp-up without diluting shareholders, leveraging existing debt capacity and free cash flow depending on results of GAC pause refinement. • Goal to provide update on GAC plan by next earnings call in first week of May.
Segment performance
Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC) Business: Transformed from a money-losing operation to a free cash flow generating business over the last three years. Leading market share in powdered activated carbon, serving diverse markets including power generation (scrubbing mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants, improving taste and odor in municipal drinking water, removing micropollutants). Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) Business: Principal focus on removing PFAS from municipal drinking water, scrubbing biogas pollutants, and other applications. There's a persistent demand-supply imbalance in GAC with barriers to entry. Currently, GAC production is paused for refinement, and the company is reevaluating the plan with potential for significant scaling in future phases.
Risks & headwinds
• GAC production pause due to original design deficiencies in thermal oxidizer and off-gas system, which could impact timeline and cost of ramping up production. • Uncertainty regarding the refinement of GAC plan, including potential variations in cost, timing, and design within a significant bracket. • Potential challenges in scaling GAC production and ensuring product quality and efficiency after modifications.
Analyst Q&A
Q: Could you walk us through the challenges that led to the pause in GAC production and why it was necessary?
A: Based on original design flaws from the engineering firm, there were production challenges on front, middle, and back ends. Testing showed modifications to thermal oxidizer wouldn't reach production goals, so a pause was made to refine ROI.
Q: How should investors think about the potential shift in GAC profile with possible scaling to 50 million pounds?
A: The underlying demand for GAC exists, and pausing allows refining cost, ensuring economic return and no inhibition to future expansion.
Q: What gives confidence in product quality with switch from Corbin feedstock facility's wet cake to bituminous coal?
A: Unique spherical shaping process of GAC provides larger surface area and pore structure for better performance. A best-in-class technical team identified suitable coal streams.
Q: How does pausing GAC improve near-term outlook for PAC?
A: Redirects furnace hours back to proven and profitable PAC business, actively improving near-term financial performance by optimizing furnace hours.
Q: What's behind the confidence to issue EBITDA guidance?
A: Increased investor transparency, no distraction from ramping up GAC production, strong contract visibility in PAC, and understanding of costs related to GAC.
Q: What's the thinking behind team restructuring?
A: To upgrade talent, with new sales head bringing strategic selling experience, consulting an experienced operative for operations, and seeking an upgraded CFO to better handle company challenges.