OUST Q2 Earnings Call Focuses on Rev8 Ramp and Robotics Demand

Management kept its full-year 2026 revenue expectations unchanged, framing the second half around scaling new products rather than resetting the outlook.

OUST Sets Rev8 Ramp as Near-Term Focus

CEO Angus Pacala said Rev8 secured multiple orders worth more than $1 million from heavy-equipment, agriculture and autonomous-vehicle customers. Management expects production volumes by the end of the third quarter.

Pacala said Rev8 should become a critical part of revenues in the second half, though he expects the full customer transition from Rev7 to take about two years.

CFO Ken Gianella added that Rev8 contributed only minor prototype sales in the second quarter, leaving the larger revenue impact tied to the production ramp.

Ouster Sees BlueCity Opening More Infrastructure Demand

CEO Angus Pacala highlighted new BlueCity deployments tied to transportation projects in New Jersey and Georgia, as well as a Utah order covering several hundred intersections.

Pacala said Rev8's longer-range OS1 Max configuration expands BlueCity into wider roads and higher-speed traffic, with detection and classification extending to 500 feet.

In the Q&A session, a ROTH Capital Partners analyst asked about an inflection in intelligent transportation demand. Pacala said the first half marked a major step-up for BlueCity after investments in sales execution, software and Rev8 integration.

OUST Leans Into Robotics With Stereolabs

CEO Angus Pacala said Stereolabs had an exceptional start under Ouster, with strong demand for stereo cameras and the ZED X Nano among humanoid and robotic-manipulation customers.

Pacala described humanoid robotics as camera-first, noting that the platforms he has observed use multiple cameras, while only a smaller subset includes lidar.

CFO Ken Gianella said Ouster is investing in Stereolabs manufacturing capacity over the next several quarters to support demand into 2027 and beyond, not just the current-year plan.

Ouster Keeps Q3 Outlook Tied to Production Execution

CFO Ken Gianella guided third-quarter revenues to $54.5-$57.5 million, with Rev8 production expected to ramp up through the quarter and more heavily in the latter part.

Gianella said third-quarter operating expenses are expected to rise 5-8% year over year as Ouster integrates Stereolabs, launches products and expands its physical AI solutions portfolio.

A Rosenblatt Securities analyst asked whether additional Rev8 supply could have supported higher guidance. CEO Angus Pacala said Ouster guides to what it can realistically ship while meeting customer lead times and maintaining backlog.

OUST Q&A Puts Capacity and Margin Discipline in Focus

A Northland Capital Markets analyst questioned the move toward more than 100,000 units of lidar manufacturing capacity. CEO Angus Pacala pointed to lidar unit volumes rising 70% year over year and said Ouster wants excess capacity for demand and product-mix flexibility.

A Craig-Hallum analyst pressed on gross margins after GAAP gross margin reached 49%. CFO Ken Gianella said a one-time refund added about 1,000 basis points and that the normalized gross margin would have been in the high-30% range.

Gianella maintained a near-term 35-40% product gross-margin framework while noting that a larger software and BlueCity mix can support higher margins over time.

Ouster Maintains a Full-Stack Physical AI Strategy

Angus Pacala closed with a focus on combining lidar, cameras, compute and perception software into a unified offering that can reduce customer integration work and accelerate deployment.

Ken Gianella also emphasized financial flexibility. Ouster ended June with $263 million in cash, restricted cash and short-term investments, then raised about $191 million in net proceeds in July. He said the company does not expect to need additional capital for its current operating plan.

OUST's Zacks Signals Remain Mixed

OUST carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), placing it among the top-ranked stocks under a system designed to identify potential outperformers over the next one to three months. Its Growth Score of B is also favorable under the Style Scores framework. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The Value Score of F, the Momentum Score of F and the VGM Score of F are weaker signals, tempering the favorable Growth reading. The Zacks Rank can change as analyst estimates are revised after the just-reported results, so the current combination represents a snapshot rather than a fixed assessment.

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