United States Antimony Highlights Growth Amid Near-Term Losses

United States Antimony Corp. ((UAMY)) has held its Q1 earnings call. Read on for the main highlights of the call.

United States Antimony’s latest earnings call painted a cautiously upbeat picture, with management stressing strategic gains despite weak quarterly profits. Executives highlighted fresh government backing, expanded production capacity, new resource discoveries and stronger capital markets support, while acknowledging cost inflation, project delays and investment volatility that could make the next few quarters uneven.

Stable Sales but Clear Growth Signals

Consolidated first-quarter sales came in at $6.8 million, essentially flat versus $7.0 million a year earlier and signaling a stable top line. Beneath that surface, zeolite shipments showed sharp acceleration, with March volumes about 60% above last year and both March and April running well ahead of internal monthly targets.

Balance Sheet Fortified by Fresh Capital

The company closed the quarter with $60.2 million in cash and liquid securities and then added a $12.8 million government grant plus $48.6 million from an equity raise. Management now counts roughly $118.9 million in cash, treasuries and marketable securities, while debt remains negligible at about $162,000.

Government Grants and Defense Contracts Mount

Management underscored a growing pipeline of public-sector support, including a $27 million federal grant from the Department of Defense, part of which has already been received. The firm also booked $12 million of sales orders under a Defense Logistics Agency contract and is pursuing additional grant applications totaling about $274 million across multiple projects.

Capacity Expansion at Thompson Falls and Radersburg

A major expansion at the Thompson Falls facility is expected to lift capacity from roughly 75 tons per month to about 230 tons with nine furnaces. The company aims to reach around 80% of that new capacity by mid-July, while a newly acquired Radersburg flotation mill is being outfitted with a lab to speed in-house assay work.

Large-Scale Tungsten and Antimony-Gold Resources

United States Antimony highlighted a new technical report for its Fostung tungsten asset, citing an inferred resource of 14.62 million tons grading 0.17% WO3 and a theoretical in-ground value near $9.3 billion. The company also showcased the Nolan Creek antimony-gold deposit, where high-grade material is estimated at over 42,000 tons, translating into a substantial gross metal value at current prices.

Hydromet JV Aims at Half the U.S. Antimony Market

The firm’s joint venture with Americas Gold and Silver envisions a 120,000-square-foot hydrometallurgical facility in Idaho capable of producing about 1,000 tons per month of 99.9% pure antimony by 2028. Management framed the project as a long-term platform to process lower-grade and more contaminated feedstocks and capture roughly half of the U.S. market.

Listing Upgrade and Rising Market Recognition

The company’s uplisting to the NYSE’s main board and a ceremonial bell-ringing on March 11 marked a step up in its capital markets profile. During the quarter, shares climbed from $5.93 to $8.30, pushing market capitalization from roughly $830 million to around $1.19 billion and driving institutional ownership toward the 50% mark.

Improvements in Feedstock Supply and Processing

Operationally, the Madero smelter in Mexico secured consolidated supply contracts averaging about 225 tons of quality feedstock per month, shoring up supply reliability. Early test work at Radersburg produced flotation concentrates with antimony grades above 60%, bolstering confidence in the site’s processing potential.

Margins Hit by Higher Costs and Noncash Losses

First-quarter gross profit fell by $1.3 million year over year, pressured by higher labor, factory, import and freight costs alongside front-loaded investments in logistics and automation. The company posted a net loss of $11.3 million, driven mainly by $4.8 million of noncash stock-based compensation and a $4.1 million unrealized mark-to-market loss on a Larvotto equity stake.

Segment Softness and Front-Loaded Spending

Antimony segment sales slipped about 2% and zeolite segment sales declined roughly 7% for the quarter, reflecting a softer near-term revenue mix. Management stressed that elevated inventory, staffing and freight spending is intentional and designed to build capacity for future growth, even as it weighs on current margins.

Larvotto Investment Volatility Raises Questions

The Larvotto holding remained a point of concern, with an unrealized loss of about $4.1 million recorded at quarter end and management citing disappointing engagement from Larvotto’s leadership. Executives left the door open to selling the stake and noted that subsequent price swings underscored both volatility and governance risk around the investment.

Project Delays and Regulatory Hurdles

Supply chain issues, including delayed OEM heat exchanger parts, and commissioning glitches slowed the Thompson Falls ramp-up, while weather-related flooding pushed back Fostung field work. In Montana, additional leach testing requested by regulators delayed approvals at Stibnite Hill, reminding investors that permitting and environmental reviews could temper the pace of planned 2026 mining increases.

Inventory Build Consumes Working Capital

Inventory climbed by $9.5 million to $22.0 million, reflecting strategic purchases of feedstock and readiness for higher throughput. While this positions plants to respond quickly to demand, it also ties up working capital in the short term, a trade-off management defended as necessary to underpin larger federal supply contracts.

Guidance: Big Federal Orders, Bigger Capacity Goals

Management reaffirmed its target of $125 million in 2026 revenue, up from a prior $100 million goal, with $75 million to $95 million expected from federal antimony ingot shipments alone. Operationally, guidance centers on bringing Thompson Falls to around 230 tons per month, sustaining Madero at about 225 tons per month, launching a Radersburg mill and lab by early July and advancing the hydromet JV toward 1,000 tons per month of high-purity antimony by 2028.

United States Antimony’s call balanced clear strategic wins against near-term earnings pain, leaving investors with a story of growth funded by grants, equity and government contracts. The path ahead is execution-heavy and likely choppy, but management’s confidence in hitting its 2026 revenue target—and in building a domestic antimony and tungsten platform—positions the stock as a high-risk, high-upside way to play critical minerals demand.