Optical Cable Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

Optical Cable (NASDAQ:OCC) reported a stronger commencement to fiscal 2026, citing higher request crossed endeavor and specialty markets, improved gross margin, and a sharply higher income bid backlog and guardant load. Management said momentum successful targeted markets, peculiarly information centers, was gathering arsenic the institution entered the 2nd fiscal quarter.

For the archetypal 4th ended Jan. 31, 2026, consolidated nett income accrued 4.4% to $16.4 million, up from $15.7 cardinal successful the prior-year period, according to CFO Tracy Smith. The institution reported maturation successful some its endeavor and specialty markets versus the aforesaid 4th past year, which absorption attributed to “general marketplace improvements” successful the manufacture and spot successful its severe-duty market.

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Gross nett roseate 16.1% to $5.4 cardinal from $4.6 cardinal a twelvemonth earlier. Gross borderline expanded to 32.7% from 29.4%, with Smith pointing to higher volumes and the resulting operating leverage. She besides noted gross borderline tin alteration meaningfully 4th to 4th based connected merchandise mix.

SG&A expenses were $5.6 million, compared with $5.5 cardinal successful the year-ago quarter, driven chiefly by higher worker and contracted income unit costs and shipping costs. As a percent of nett sales, SG&A improved to 33.8% from 34.7%.

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Optical Cable posted a nett nonaccomplishment of $398,000, oregon $0.05 per basal and diluted share, compared with a nett nonaccomplishment of $1.1 million, oregon $0.14 per basal and diluted share, successful the prior-year quarter.

Management highlighted an summation successful income bid backlog and guardant load to $10.4 cardinal astatine the extremity of the quarter, up from $6.6 cardinal astatine the extremity of the archetypal 4th of fiscal 2025. Smith added that backlog and guardant load besides accrued from $7.3 cardinal astatine fiscal 2025 year-end.

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CEO Neil Wilkin said the institution expects to physique connected the momentum, adjacent arsenic seasonality typically affects the archetypal fractional of the fiscal year. He said the institution was “seeing increasing momentum successful our targeted markets and, successful particular, successful our information halfway market” aboriginal successful the 2nd quarter.

In effect to a shareholder question, Wilkin said the institution remained optimistic astir information halfway opportunities, specifically successful multi-tenant and endeavor information halfway sectors. He said OCC saw “significant and increasing enactment and lawsuit requests for quotes” successful the information halfway assemblage during January, and that enactment was continuing and increasing entering fiscal Q2.