Shares of Ultralife Corporation ULBI have gained 34.6% since the company reported its earnings for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, outperforming the S&P 500 Index’s 0.04% loss over the same period. Over the past month, ULBI shares have gained 26.5% compared with the S&P 500’s 2.3% rise.
Ultralife’s Earnings Snapshot
Ultralife reported second-quarter 2026 revenues of $47.9 million, down 1.3% from $48.6 million a year earlier, while GAAP earnings per share (EPS) increased to $0.15 from $0.05. Net income attributable to ULBI rose to $2.5 million from $0.9 million.
Battery & Energy Products revenues decreased 3.7% to $44.2 million from $45.9 million. This reflected a 4.7% decline in commercial sales, including an 8.7% decrease in oil & gas and industrial sales, partly offset by 7.2% growth in medical battery sales. Government/defense sales in the segment declined 1.4%. Communications Systems revenues climbed 39.3% to $3.8 million from $2.7 million, primarily due to order timing.
ULBI’s Other Key Business Metrics
Gross profit increased 19.5% year over year to $13.9 million, while gross margin expanded 500 basis points to 28.9% from 23.9%. The improvement reflected favorable product mix across both segments and a $1.1 million net refund of previously paid IEEPA tariffs, which contributed 230 basis points to gross margin. Battery & Energy Products gross margin rose to 28.3% from 23.6%, while Communications Systems margin increased to 36.3% from 28.4%.
Backlog reached a company record of $117.5 million from $84.5 million a year earlier and $115.1 million at the end of the first quarter. More than $14 million of backlog came from products released within the past year.
Adjusted EBITDA increased 49.5% to $6.1 million, or 12.8% of sales, from $4.1 million, or 8.5%, a year ago. Working capital stood at $69.8 million, with a current ratio of 2.9 compared with $68.5 million and 2.8 for 2025-end, respectively.
Ultralife Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Ultralife Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Ultralife Corporation Quote
Ultralife’s Management Commentary
CEO Mike Manna said that Ultralife is making progress on operational improvements and product commercialization. Management highlighted Communications Systems’ growing opportunity funnel and new-product releases, while defense spending on force modernization and advanced network capabilities was viewed as supportive of future program opportunities.
ULBI has addressed a significant scrap issue affecting its largest margin-impacting product line and corrected another major source of margin inefficiency. Management expects these initiatives to generate approximately $600,000-$800,000 in annual Battery & Energy gross-margin savings.
Ultralife is also undertaking lean manufacturing and automation projects at its Raynham facility as it anticipates more than 30% growth in customer demand and cell consumption over the next year.
Factors Influencing ULBI’s Headline Numbers
Profitability benefited materially from product mix and the tariff refund. Excluding the $1.1 million refund, consolidated gross margin was 26.6%.
Meanwhile, operating expenses increased 11.6% to $10.4 million as new-product development costs rose 39.1%. Ultralife also incurred $0.9 million of one-time costs related to litigation expenses for a cyber-insurance claim and consulting work tied to manufacturing margin improvements. Operating income nevertheless rose 52.3% to $3.4 million from $2.3 million, with operating margin expanding to 7.2% from 4.6%.
Ultralife’s Outlook
Management did not provide specific revenue or EPS guidance. However, it maintained an outlook for profitable growth in 2026, supported by backlog execution, margin initiatives and multi-year development opportunities.
Several battery programs serving medical, safety and drone markets are expected to move into production later in 2026 and into 2027. Management also expects water-based drone opportunities using Electrochem cells to begin contributing meaningful incremental revenues in the fourth quarter.
ULBI’s Other Developments
Ultralife continued expanding vertical-integration opportunities stemming from its 2024 Electrochem acquisition by incorporating Electrochem cells into existing battery-pack assemblies.
ULBI is also realigning its various businesses under the Ultralife Master brand, with completion expected by year-end.
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