An Iridium Next satellite. Photo: Iridium.
Iridium revealed its financial results for the third quarter of 2018 and updated its full-year 2018 outlook. Net loss was $12.9 million, or $0.13 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2018, as compared to net income of $29.3 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2017. According to the release, this decrease in net income was primarily the result of a $39.2 million increase in depreciation and amortization expense from the year-ago period, reflecting an increased number of Iridium Next satellites in service.
Operational Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA "OEBITDA") for the third quarter was $79.4 million, as compared to $71.8 million for the prior-year period, representing a year-over-year increase of 11 percent and an OEBITDA margin of 58 percent. OEBITDA benefitted from higher commercial service revenue and continued strength in equipment sales.
Iridium reported third-quarter total revenue of $136.8 million, which consisted of $105.7 million of service revenue and $31.0 million of revenue related to equipment sales and engineering and support projects. Total revenue increased 17 percent versus the comparable period of 2017, while service revenue grew by 18% from the year-ago period. Service revenue, which represents primarily recurring revenue from Iridium's growing subscriber base, was 77 percent of total revenue for the third quarter of 2018.
The Company ended the quarter with 1,092,000 total billable subscribers, which compares to 949,000 for the year-ago period and is up from 1,047,000 for the quarter ended June 30, 2018. Total billable subscribers grew 15 percent year-over-year, driven by growth in Internet of Things (IOT) and government customers.