Following a stock price surge and subsequent sell-off, Intuitive machines (LUNR -13.01%) was a pretty lively stock over the last few trading sessions. The spike and selloff came Thursday, with the announcement that the lunar exploration craft maker would release its third-quarter results. Late in the evening, its shares were up 5% since the start of the week, according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

A very honorable increase in income

During the quarter, Intuitive, still a relatively young company, more than quadrupled its revenue year over year to nearly $58.5 million. This resulted in a loss of $55.5 million according to GAAP standards, compared to a profit of more than $33 million in the same period of 2023. On a per-share basis, its deficit was $0.12 in the most recently reported framework.

The company met analysts’ average estimate for a net loss, while beating consensus revenue forecasts of $51 million, according to FactSet figures cited by Barron’s.

Intuitive is focused on improving the three “pillars” of its business: delivery, data transmission and infrastructure as a service. In the earnings release, the company quoted CEO Steve Altemus as saying of the three that they “clearly highlight our business thesis, allowing us to focus on capturing more operational services, which us, will generate long-term revenues with higher margins. “

The backlog blues

Although the development of Intuitive’s high-end line was encouraging, management warned of a growing lag for its products. This will weigh on its fundamentals, and is likely one of the reasons why investors dampened their enthusiasm for the stock as Thursday progressed. The company ended the quarter with a record backlog of $316 million.