YARDLEY, PA — Smart Sand, Inc. (NASDAQ: SND) posted record quarterly revenue and sales volumes in the second quarter of 2026, as stronger demand and higher pricing lifted revenue 34% from a year earlier and pushed the frac-sand supplier back to profitability after a first-quarter loss.
Revenue rose to $115.1 million from $85.8 million a year earlier and $93.1 million in the first quarter. Smart Sand sold approximately 1.86 million tons during the quarter, up 31% year over year and 25% sequentially.
Net income was $10.2 million, or $0.26 per diluted share, compared with a $3.9 million loss, or $0.10 per share, in the first quarter. A year earlier, Smart Sand earned $21.4 million, or $0.55 per share.
The company attributed the sequential earnings improvement primarily to higher volumes and modest pricing gains, partly offset by the associated increase in cost of goods sold. Income-tax expense and benefits also affected comparisons between periods.
Gross profit climbed to $19.8 million from $9 million a year earlier and $6.1 million in the first quarter. Cost of goods sold increased to $95.2 million from $76.8 million a year earlier as higher volumes drove additional mining, production and freight costs.
Smart Sand’s contribution margin reached $27.1 million, or $14.54 per ton, compared with $15.8 million, or $11.08 per ton, a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA rose to $18.7 million from $7.8 million.
Chief Executive Officer Charles Young characterized the quarter as “one of the best quarters in Smart Sand’s history,” citing record sales volumes and revenue and what the company described as record contribution margin and adjusted EBITDA after excluding one-time items.
Demand has remained strong across Smart Sand’s primary operating basins, according to Young. The company expects longer-term growth in North American natural-gas consumption, including demand tied to LNG exports, gas-fired electricity generation and AI data centers, to support well-completion activity in the Appalachian Basin and Canadian shale regions.
Smart Sand now expects full-year 2026 sales volumes to increase 10% to 20% from 2025 and anticipates remaining free-cash-flow positive for the year. Management expects activity to remain strong through the third quarter and potentially into the fourth.
Industrial Product Solutions volumes also increased sequentially, and management expects further growth in that business. The company’s redesigned SmartSystems fleet continued operating during the quarter.
Second-quarter free cash flow was negative $1.4 million, deteriorating from positive $800,000 in the first quarter but improving from negative $7.8 million a year earlier. Operating activities generated $3.4 million of cash, while capital expenditures totaled $4.8 million.
Smart Sand spent about $7 million on capital projects through June 30 and projects full-year capital expenditures of $15 million to $20 million, excluding acquisitions and potential investments in new terminals.
The company ended June with $10.2 million in cash and another $30 million of undrawn availability under its FCB ABL Credit Facility.
Smart Sand also continued returning capital to investors. It repurchased 470,088 shares for $2.5 million during the second quarter under a program authorizing as much as $20 million in repurchases through April 2028.
The board separately declared a $0.10-per-share special dividend in July, representing about $4.2 million, following another $0.10 special dividend paid in May that distributed approximately $3.9 million. Including the August dividend, Smart Sand reported returning approximately $12.1 million to shareholders through dividends and buybacks during 2026.
The company also disclosed a finance leadership transition scheduled for Jan. 1, 2027. James Young, currently general counsel, will succeed Lee Beckelman as chief financial officer, while Beckelman will remain as an adviser to assist with the transition and other projects.
Stephen Brill, currently Smart Sand’s associate general counsel, will be promoted to general counsel on the same date.
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