ProFrac (NASDAQ:ACDC) reported improved fourth-quarter results as stronger-than-expected activity, better execution, and early benefits from cost and capital initiatives helped lift profitability from the prior quarter, management said on the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call.
Fourth-quarter performance improved sequentially
Executive Chairman Matt Wilks said total adjusted EBITDA increased 49% from the third quarter, driven by improvement in the company’s two largest segments: stimulation services and proppant production. He attributed the better results to “better than anticipated activity levels,” optimized uptime, and early progress from cost and capital management actions.
Full-year results and segment details
For full-year 2025, Harbour reported revenue of $1.94 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $310 million, with a 16% adjusted EBITDA margin. Full-year free cash flow was $25 million.
In stimulation services, Harbour said fourth-quarter revenue rose to $384 million from $343 million in the third quarter, while adjusted EBITDA increased to $33 million from $20 million. Segment margin improved to 8.7% from 5.7%, which management tied to more consistent activity levels, better fleet utilization, and early cost-savings benefits. For the full year, stimulation services revenue was $1.68 billion with adjusted EBITDA of $209 million and a 12.4% margin.
Proppant production also strengthened materially in the fourth quarter. Harbour said segment revenue increased to $115 million from $76 million in the third quarter, and adjusted EBITDA doubled to $16 million from $8 million. Segment margin improved to 14% from 10.5%. The company cited roughly 2 million tons of volume, high uptime, and logistics optimization, particularly in West Texas and South Texas. Harbour added that 43% of proppant volumes were sold to third-party customers in the fourth quarter, up from 39% in the third quarter. For full-year 2025, proppant production revenue was $336 million with adjusted EBITDA of $57 million and a 17% margin.
In manufacturing, Harbour said fourth-quarter revenue was $43 million versus $48 million in the third quarter, with adjusted EBITDA of $4 million, in line with the prior quarter. For the year, manufacturing revenue was $212 million and adjusted EBITDA was $19 million, with an 8.7% margin. Selling, general and administrative expenses were $43 million in the fourth quarter, consistent with the third quarter.
Weather disruptions weighed on early 2026 results, but activity improved later in the quarter
Management said winter storms in January created meaningful operational disruption across both stimulation and proppant. Chief Executive Officer Ladd Wilks estimated the weather impact reduced quarterly adjusted EBITDA by approximately $8 million to $12 million, with a heavier impact in stimulation services.
Despite the disruption, management said activity improved as the quarter progressed. Ladd Wilks said the company maintained a consistent fleet count in the “low 20s” through the fourth quarter and into the first quarter, while utilization and operational efficiency improved in the fourth quarter and pricing remained relatively stable quarter-over-quarter.
In the Q&A, management said the company’s first-quarter results were expected to be softer than the fourth quarter due to January disruptions, but indicated that exit activity levels were “in line to slightly better” than the fourth quarter. Harbour characterized the weather-driven EBITDA impact as largely “pushed out to the right,” though lost in the first quarter because the company “can’t get those days back,” and suggested the impact could be earned back over time as schedules tighten into the second quarter.
In proppant, Ladd Wilks said first-quarter volumes were expected to be down quarter-over-quarter due to January weather and additional operational challenges that affected production. He added that the sand mines were disproportionately affected by freezing temperatures, which disrupted wash plants and inventory, particularly in regions not accustomed to such weather. He said demand remained solid and that “everything that we can make” is sold, framing the near-term as “an exercise in execution.”
Cost optimization program update and 2026 capital outlook
Matt Wilks outlined progress on a business optimization plan introduced in November, targeting about $100 million in annualized savings by the end of the second quarter of 2026. The plan includes labor-related reductions, non-labor operating expense reductions, and capital expenditure efficiency gains. He said:
- Capital expenditure efficiency savings had already achieved at least the midpoint of the $20 million to $30 million target range, with expectations to reach the high end.
- Labor-related measures were “fully implemented,” running at an annualized rate at or above the midpoint of the $35 million to $45 million target range.
- Non-labor savings were about one-third achieved on an annualized basis so far, largely from SG&A actions, with repair and maintenance and asset-level initiatives expected to accelerate.
Harbour added that the estimated combined cash impact in the fourth quarter from labor, non-labor, and capital savings was about $45 million, including roughly $10 million of labor savings, $10 million of non-labor savings, and about $25 million of CapEx savings. He noted labor and non-labor savings were executed throughout the quarter and therefore did not represent the full potential quarterly run-rate impact.
On capital spending, Harbour said 2025 CapEx totaled $170 million, down from $255 million in 2024. For 2026, the company guided to total capital expenditures (including Flotek spend) of $155 million to $185 million. Excluding Flotek, ProFrac expects CapEx of $145 million to $175 million.
Technology focus: ProPilot, Seismos partnership, and Machina platform
Management highlighted technology initiatives centered on automation and real-time completion optimization. Matt Wilks discussed the company’s partnership with Seismos and described a broader platform called Machina, which he said combines ProPilot surface automation with subsurface intelligence and other data streams across the completion lifecycle.
He described Machina as integrating treatment design, real-time measurement, mid-stage intervention, frac hit detection, live pad tracking, historical analytics, supply chain optimization, and water quality analysis in a unified architecture. He also said Machina’s architecture includes AI “engineering agents” that monitor, interpret, and act across the workflow.
Ladd Wilks said the “closed loop” module uses acoustic friction analysis to detect perforation efficiency issues and prescribes interventions that ProPilot executes with millisecond response. He cited field results indicating closed loop intervention reduced cumulative perforation efficiency degradation by 33% compared with untreated stages.
In the Q&A, management said ProPilot is installed on every fleet and located in the data van, while Machina is a customer-facing software layer that allows customers to pull in real-time data and set rules for how equipment responds. Management said it is “too early” to discuss production uplift and emphasized focusing on perforation openness as a near-term metric, noting that attributing production changes can take six to nine months and can be complicated by other variables.
Balance sheet and liquidity actions
Harbour said year-end 2025 cash and cash equivalents were about $23 million (including about $6 million attributable to Flotek). Total liquidity was approximately $152 million, including $135 million available under the ABL. Borrowings under the ABL ended the year at $69 million, which he said was a $91 million reduction from September 30.
At year-end, ProFrac had approximately $1.05 billion of principal debt outstanding, with the majority not due until 2029, and Harbour said the company repaid about $136 million of long-term debt in 2025.
He also described several financing and covenant-related actions, including completing additional issuances of 2029 senior notes during 2025 and an additional $25 million issuance to Beal Bank in January after year-end. Harbour said the company amended the Alpine term loan to reduce quarterly amortization payments for the first two quarters of 2026 and deferred leverage ratio testing by one year to March 2028. He added that ProFrac extended the maturity of its senior unsecured revolving credit facility by six months to September 2027 and said the facility now has $275 million of capacity.
Looking ahead, management reiterated a disciplined stance on fleet deployment and capital allocation. Matt Wilks said the company would keep fleet count where it is unless there is a “true call on assets and activity,” while also pointing to potential demand catalysts and the benefits of the company’s dual-fuel and electric fleets in a higher diesel-price environment.
About ProFrac (NASDAQ:ACDC)
ProFrac Holding Corp. operates as a technology-focused energy services holding company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Stimulation Services, Manufacturing, and Proppant Production. The company offers hydraulic fracturing, well stimulation, in-basin frac sand, and other completion services and complementary products and services to upstream oil and natural gas companies engaged in the exploration and production of unconventional oil and natural gas resources. It also manufactures and sells high horsepower pumps, valves, piping, swivels, large-bore manifold systems, and fluid ends.
