Intuitive Machines trades on Nasdaq as LUNR, and it earns money from fixed-price government contracts rather than from selling a product off a shelf. NASA awards each lunar landing as its own task order under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.
Revenue is recognized on the cost-to-cost method as work is performed. Read the quarterly numbers through that mechanism and most of the volatility stops looking random.
Each mission is a separate contract with its own dollar value
The Q2 2026 10-Q lists the lunar awards one by one, each with a value and a period of performance.
IM-3 was awarded in November 2021 at an estimated $91.3 million and runs through March 2027. IM-4 followed in August 2024 at $124.5 million. IM-6 was awarded in March 2026 at $160.1 million, with performance stretching all the way to May 2031.
IM-5 arrived in June 2026 with a base value of $68.6 million, plus an option period worth $79.7 million that the customer had not exercised as of June 30, 2026.
Part of every award is held back. The filing excludes constrained revenue of $9.7 million on IM-3, $16.2 million on IM-4 and $18.3 million on IM-6, tied to outcomes not yet resolved.
An acquisition now supplies most of the reported revenue
Second-quarter 2026 revenue was $206.2 million against $50.3 million a year earlier. Very little of that jump is lunar.
Product revenue of $166.7 million in the quarter came from Lanteris, the former Maxar Space Systems, bought in January 2026. Service revenue, which is the legacy Intuitive Machines line, fell to $36.7 million from $50.3 million.
The six-month view is sharper. Total revenue rose $280.1 million while Lanteris alone contributed $308.3 million, so the pre-acquisition business contracted rather than grew.
Anyone weighing this ticker against the wider field of space stocks should split those two lines before drawing a growth conclusion.
Two lunar contracts are running at a loss
As of June 30, 2026 the filing states that IM-3 and IM-4 are both in a loss position. On a fixed-price award that means estimated costs to complete exceed what the customer will pay, and the shortfall is accrued immediately.
Program risk shows up elsewhere in the same document. NASA cancelled the OSAM task orders under the OMES III contract, which the company runs as a joint venture holding a 47% profits interest against KBR’s 53%.
Near Space Network revenue fell $7.3 million in the quarter on schedule delay and an unfavorable change in estimate. That reliance on federal appropriations is a trait it shares with the AI defense stocks selling into the same buyers.
Backlog, cash, and what closed after the quarter
Contracted backlog stood at $1.76 billion at June 30, 2026, against cash and equivalents of $367.4 million and working capital of $263.0 million. Operating loss for the quarter was $47.1 million.
On August 3, 2026, after the period closed, the company completed the Goonhilly acquisition. The UK consideration was £37.0 million split equally between cash and stock, alongside a $10 million base cash price for COMSAT LLC.
What remains is an execution question against signed work, the same shape that hangs over a milestone-driven name like TMC and its seabed permit application. The dates are public. They either land or they slip.
Does Intuitive Machines get paid before a landing succeeds?
Largely yes. Revenue is recognized over the life of the contract as costs are incurred, not on touchdown, though amounts described as constrained revenue stay off the books until the related uncertainty resolves.
Why did revenue quadruple year over year?
The Lanteris acquisition, completed in January 2026. It supplied $166.7 million of product revenue in the second quarter, while the older service revenue line declined.
What does a contract in a loss position mean?
The company expects the total cost of delivering that mission to exceed the fixed price the customer agreed to pay. IM-3 and IM-4 were both in that position at June 30, 2026.
Daniel Reyes is a markets writer for S4Tips covering the AI infrastructure and semiconductor supply chain. He focuses on the companies that build and power the AI compute stack. His articles are for information only and are not financial advice.