Iridium Communications Inc ( IRDM ) shares are trading higher on Thursday.

The company reported first-quarter earnings per share of 16 cents, outpacing the Wallstreet estimate of 15 cents. Quarterly revenues of $203.85 million beat the analyst consensus of $193.75 million, driven by strong service revenue growth and subscriber expansion.

Total billable subscribers grew 14% year-over-year to 2.33 million, led by growth in commercial IoT.

Operational EBITDA for the first quarter was $115.0 million, as compared to $111.9 million for the prior-year period, representing a year-over-year increase of 3%. 

Net income benefitted from a year-over-year decrease in depreciation expense and continued growth in total commercial services revenue.

Quarterly sales consisted of $148.6 million of service revenue and $55.3 million of revenue related to equipment sales and engineering and support projects.

“Continued strong service revenue growth fueled Iridium’s business results in the first quarter,” said Matt Desch, CEO, Iridium. 

Desch added, “Subscriber growth and demand for Iridium’s mission-critical applications are driving new service development and free cash flow.”

What’s Next?

Iridium Communications ( IRDM ) reiterated total service revenue growth between 4% and 6% for full-year 2024. Total service revenue for 2023 was $584.5 million.

Full-year 2024 OEBITDA is reaffirmed between $460 million and $470 million. OEBITDA for 2023 was $463.1 million.

The company now expects longer-term cash tax rate will move closer to the statutory rate in 2028.

According to Benzinga Pro, IRDM stock has lost over 53% in the past year. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF and ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF .

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Price Action: IRDM shares are trading higher by 10.7% to $27.37 on the last check Thursday.