ESS Tech (NYSE:GWH) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.25 EPS

ESS Tech (NYSE:GWH) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported ($0.54) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by ($0.25), FiscalAI reports. ESS Tech had a negative net margin of 1,045.28% and a negative return on equity of 1,811.99%. The business had revenue of $0.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.40 million.

Here are the key takeaways from ESS Tech’s conference call:

• Project New Horizon announced with Salt River Project and Google for a 5 MW / 50 MWh pilot (manufacturing in 2026, targeted delivery December 2027) under a 10-year capacity agreement, providing a flagship commercial reference for ESS’s Energy Base.
• Independent, real-world validation was achieved—APPA’s 21-month DEED demonstration at Burbank Water & Power validated ESS’s non-flammable iron saltwater chemistry, and two systems were successfully commissioned at Turlock Irrigation District.
• ESS is expanding its addressable market via a letter of intent with Alsym Energy to jointly develop non-flammable sodium‑ion short/medium-duration batteries and by acquiring VoltStorage IP and assets, strengthening its technology and IP base.
• Financials remain constrained—Q1 revenue was just $128k, net loss was $15.9M and adjusted EBITDA loss was $10.3M; liquidity totaled roughly $21.5M after a $15M registered direct offering, while net cash used in operations was $13.5M in the quarter.
• Management laid out a milestone-driven roadmap (200 kW Wilsonville commission in Q3 2026, first 800 kW client system H1 2027, then the 5 MW SRP delivery end of 2027) and says over 500 MW of scaled manufacturing capacity is in place to support commercialization.

ESS Tech Price Performance

Shares of GWH stock traded down $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $0.78. 7,796,962 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 525,983. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1.23 and a 200 day moving average of $2.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. ESS Tech has a 52-week low of $0.57 and a 52-week high of $13.87. The company has a market cap of $21.17 million, a PE ratio of -0.23 and a beta of 1.43.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ESS Tech

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of ESS Tech during the 4th quarter worth about $2,632,000. Arosa Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of ESS Tech by 40.7% during the 4th quarter. Arosa Capital Management LP now owns 950,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,786,000 after acquiring an additional 274,583 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ESS Tech by 140.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 136,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 79,657 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its stake in shares of ESS Tech by 137.8% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 49,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 28,749 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of ESS Tech by 188.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 46,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 30,671 shares in the last quarter. 46.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWH has been the topic of several research reports. Roth Mkm cut their target price on ESS Tech from $3.50 to $2.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded ESS Tech from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of ESS Tech in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2.25.

About ESS Tech

ESS Tech, Inc (NYSE: GWH) is a Portland, Oregon‐based company specializing in long‐duration iron flow battery energy storage solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and deployment of modular battery systems that store electricity using an iron‐chloride electrochemical process. These systems are engineered to support grid operators, utilities, commercial and industrial customers in integrating renewable power, managing peak loads and ensuring reliable back‐up power.

At the heart of ESS Tech’s offering is its “Energy Warehouse,” a containerized flow battery system featuring non‐toxic, fully recyclable materials and a simple architecture that separates energy storage capacity from power output.