Maxar Boosts Revenue and Backlog in 2020

Maxar’s headquarters. Photo: Maxar Technologies

Maxar Technologies reported its Fourth Quarter (Q4) and full year 2020 financial results on Wednesday, marking the third quarter of revenue growth in a row. In Q4, Maxar reported $467 million in revenue, up from $410 million in Q4 2019. 

Overall, Maxar reported $1.7 billion in revenues in 2020 — a 3% increase over 2019. The company said the increase was primarily driven by an increase in the Space Infrastructure segment, partially offset by a decrease in the Earth Intelligence segment due to a $30 million decrease in the recognition of revenue related to the EnhancedView contract. 

Specifically, the Earth Intelligence segment comprised $1 billion in revenue, a $4 million decrease from 2019. The Space Infrastructure segment posted $721 million in revenue, a $15 million increase from 2019. 

Maxar also reported a total order backlog of $1.9 billion as of December 31, 2020 — a 17% YoY increase, driven by an increase in the Space Infrastructure segment due to new contracts with the U.S. government.

Net loss from continuing operations in 2020 was $46 million, compared to net income of $83 million in the same period in 2019, a loss of $129 million. Maxar attributed the decrease to the receipt of satellite insurance proceeds of $183 million and a gain on sale of assets of $136 million in 2019 that did not reoccur in 2020.

“One of my top priorities since taking the helm of the company has been to position both Earth Intelligence and Space Infrastructure for sustained growth over the medium to longer term, and this year’s performance is a positive proof point that we’re making progress,” CEO Dan Jablonsky said in a call with investors on Wednesday. 

Jablonsky highlighted two business moves that took place in 2020 — the sale of MDA, the proceeds of which were used to reduce indebtedness, and the acquisition of Vricon Inc. He also reported that Maxar recently acquired licensing rights to the underlying intellectual property at Vricon for the consumer and commercial markets, which increases Maxar’s confidence in long-term growth outlook 

“We believe Vricon is the global leader in satellite-derived 3D data for defense and intelligence markets, which to date is focused on 3D-mapping, Earth Observation, accelerating 5G infrastructure planning, precision-guided munitions, military simulation and training; and increasingly, the emerging needs for GPS denied navigation,” Jablonsky said. 

Maxar confirmed that the company is still on target for a September launch window for two satellites in its WorldView Legion constellation, as reported in the last financial results.