Nebius revenue surges 571% to $980.8 million as it cuts 2026 outlook
Key Facts
Nebius reported third-quarter results on November 12, posting revenue of $980.8 million, up 571% year over year and above analysts’ estimate of $907.2 million. But the company cut its 2026 revenue forecast to a range of $3.0 billion to $3.2 billion, from $3.0 billion to $3.4 billion. The company said it expects to reach the lower end of its previous range, reflecting delays in the availability of some capacity scheduled for this year. Results also showed a loss of $0.13 per share, narrower than the $0.63 loss analysts had expected. Despite beating quarterly estimates, the company’s shares fell more than 10% in premarket trading on November 12.
The company attributed the lower forecast to delays in activating capacity at third-party data centers that had been scheduled to come online this year. It said some of that capacity had been pushed back to the first half of 2027, adding that the related contracts remain in place. The delay shifts part of the expected operating capacity to a later period, affecting revenue the company had expected to generate during 2026. The obstacle puts infrastructure availability timing at the center of the revision, alongside continuing contractual commitments. The company expects the delayed capacity to come online in the first half of 2027.
On adjusted operating profitability, Nebius posted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $465.8 million in the third quarter, compared with a loss of $5.2 million in the same period a year earlier. The year-over-year comparison shows a sharp turnaround in the measure, alongside revenue growth and the company’s expansion of its AI cloud infrastructure. By contrast, the quarterly per-share result was a loss of $0.13, though narrower than analysts had expected. The report thus combined signs of improvement in revenue and adjusted profitability with a reduced annual outlook and a premarket share decline. NBIS shares closed at $154.69 on November 11, according to EL7 data.
The expansion was accompanied by a sharp rise in capital expenditure, which reached $7.3 billion in the third quarter, up 664% year over year, as the company expanded its AI cloud infrastructure. Nebius also raised its 2026 capital expenditure estimate to about $27 billion, from a previous range of $20 billion to $25 billion. This comes as cash and cash equivalents rose to $7.4 billion on September 30, from $3.7 billion at the end of 2025. The figures combine faster infrastructure spending with increased liquidity, as the company heads toward higher spending next year. The company estimated 2027 capital expenditure at $40 billion to $45 billion.
Nebius said 75% to 85% of its expected 2027 capital expenditure would be covered by customer prepayments and asset-based financing for its existing contracts. The arrangement, according to the company, provides the funding sources it expects to rely on for a large part of its upcoming spending program. At the same time, it forecast revenue of $12 billion to $13 billion in 2027 and said it is targeting pretax break-even by the end of that year. These targets set out a path for further business expansion after some capacity activation was delayed to the first half of 2027. The company also links its future spending plan to customer prepayments and asset-backed financing, alongside its targeted revenue growth.