Company Swings to $55,000 in Operating Income in Fiscal First Quarter
Key Facts
U.S. Global Investors swung to operating income of $55,000 in the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026, after recording an operating loss of $515,000 in the corresponding quarter of 2025. The company said in a statement accompanying its filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that operating expenses fell 6% year over year. The results marked an improvement in operating performance during the first quarter of its 2027 fiscal year. But that improvement did not carry through to net income, which fell to $171,000, or $0.01 per share. The company reported net income of $1.5 million, or $0.12 per share, a year earlier.
The company attributed growth in assets under management to a rise in their quarterly average to $1.6 billion, up 14% from $1.4 billion in the year-earlier period. Total assets under management stood at $1.6 billion at the end of September, up 17% year over year. The quarter-on-quarter comparison, however, paints a different picture: total assets fell $64.2 million from their level at the end of June 2026. Year over year, the total increased $231.2 million from the end of September 2025. The company said average net assets of USGIF funds rose 33.3%, and that higher market values for its gold- and natural-resources-focused equity funds were the main driver of the increase in assets during the quarter.
Gold and precious-metals strategies featured among the sources of asset growth, with average combined assets in USERX, UNWPX and GOAU of about $547.6 million, up 45% from the year-earlier period. Chief Executive Frank Holmes said investor interest in gold miners was reflected in asset levels, adding that average assets in gold strategies rose more than 45% from a year earlier. At WAR, average assets were $37.4 million in the September quarter, up 17% from the June quarter and nearly five times their level a year earlier. SEA had average assets of $16.2 million, up 81% year over year. The figures reflect mixed performance across the company's products, with clear growth in its gold, natural resources, technology, aerospace and defense, and shipping funds.
Net investment income was $112,000 during the quarter, compared with $2.3 million a year earlier, according to the company's quarterly report. The period's results included unrealized losses of $185,000 on marketable securities. By contrast, the year-earlier period included unrealized gains of $1.9 million on those securities. The company linked the decline in net income mainly to lower investment income, explaining why net profitability followed a different path from operating income. The comparison between the two periods highlights the effect of investment items on earnings, alongside the reduction in operating expenses in the latest quarter.
The company repurchased 105,457 shares during the quarter under a program that allows it to buy up to $5 million of its common stock annually in the open market, depending on market and business conditions. Net working capital was about $35.4 million on Sept. 30, 2026. Cash and cash equivalents were about $24.3 million on the same date, little changed from June 30. Against the backdrop of the quarter, the company said global markets experienced unusual volatility. It cited rising interest rates in Japan and the unwinding of some yen carry trades, alongside the Iran conflict, attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and uncertainty ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.
As a separate indicator of global industrial activity, the company said the global manufacturing purchasing managers' index registered 52.6 points in October, its 15th consecutive month above the 50-point level that separates expansion from contraction. The company is scheduled to discuss its results in a webcast on Nov. 13, 2026, at 7:30 a.m. Central Time. The chief executive, chief financial officer and director of marketing and public relations will take part. The webcast follows the announcement of results for the quarter ended in September. The discussion will give the company an opportunity to present details of its financial performance and products to investors.