Ispire Technology (NASDAQ:ISPR) executives told investors the company’s fiscal second quarter marked an “inflection point” following a year of cost-cutting and a strategic shift toward higher-quality nicotine customers, even as revenue fell sharply year over year.
On the company’s earnings call covering the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Co-CEO Michael Wang and CFO Jay Yu said Ispire’s deliberate customer and product-mix realignment reduced sales in the period but improved several measures tied to cash collection, operating expenses, and net loss. Management also highlighted ongoing work on its IKE Tech age-gating joint venture, G-Mesh hardware technology, and expansion of manufacturing capacity in Malaysia.
Revenue declined as Ispire shifted away from lower-value customers
Wang characterized the revenue decline as expected, saying the company had consolidated its customer base since late fiscal 2025 to prioritize “high-quality clients” and move away from slower-paying customers. He also noted headwinds in the international nicotine sector, including declining e-cigarette volume and pricing pressure from Chinese manufacturers, while arguing that rising costs in China could ultimately benefit Malaysian producers—an area where Ispire is focusing production.
Margins and earnings: gross margin dipped; net loss narrowed
Yu said gross profit for the quarter was $3.5 million. He added that gross margins were 17.1%, slightly below 18.5% in the year-ago quarter. The company attributed the margin decline primarily to product mix, with fewer higher-margin products sold during the period.
Cost reductions were a major theme of the call. Yu said operating expenses declined to $10.3 million for the quarter, compared with $15.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025. The company’s net loss narrowed to $6.6 million from $8.0 million a year earlier. Wang added that for the six months ended December 31, 2025, net loss was reduced by $3.7 million compared with the same period the prior year.
Cash flow and receivables: focus on collections and payment terms
Management emphasized progress in working capital and cash collection as the company refined its customer base. Wang said net accounts receivable improved to $37.9 million at December 31, 2025, down from $47.0 million at the end of fiscal 2025. Yu repeated the same receivables figures and tied the change to a focus on higher-quality nicotine customers and more timely collections.
Wang also pointed to improved cash collection performance, saying cash collected versus revenue for calendar 2025 was 116%, compared with 67% in calendar 2024. He said average payment terms shortened and day sales outstanding improved by 8 days versus the same quarter a year earlier.
On cash usage, Wang said that from April 2025 through the end of calendar 2025, the company burned only $1 million in operating cash, which he described as evidence that cost discipline was “yielding positive results.”
Yu provided additional balance sheet and cash flow details:
- Cash was $17.6 million at December 31, 2025, compared with $24.4 million at June 30, 2025.
- Net cash flow used in operating activities was $5.2 million for the six months ended December 31, 2025, versus $0.4 million provided in the comparable prior-year period.
- Net cash used in investing activities was $0.9 million in the first half of fiscal 2026, compared with $1.1 million in the first half of the prior year.
- Net cash used in financing activities was $0.7 million for the six months ended December 31, 2025, versus none in the comparable prior-year period.
IKE Tech: age-gating interest rises amid FDA stance on flavored products
Much of the strategic discussion centered on Ispire’s IKE Tech joint venture and its age-gating technology, which Wang said has gained traction globally. He told investors that interest from major tobacco companies in the U.S. had “intensified” over the last three months after what he described as the FDA’s indication that age-gating technology is necessary to unlock the legal flavored e-cigarette market.
Wang argued the U.S. nicotine vaping market is dominated by illicit products and said “by various estimates” the U.S. e-cigarette retail market is nearly $100 billion and more than 90% illicit. He said consumers want flavored products, but the legal market lacks FDA-authorized flavored e-cigarettes, pushing consumers toward unauthorized products.
Wang described IKE Tech’s approach as a blockchain-based age verification chip requiring authentication at the point of use, contrasting it with systems that verify only at purchase. He also said the company was invited to participate in an FDA Small Manufacturers Roundtable session, with Chief Legal Officer Steve Tarabella representing Ispire and serving as an IKE Tech board member.
In the Q&A session, Wang discussed a partnership with Charlie’s, calling it a “groundbreaking” deal. He said initial expected volume was between 2 million and 3 million chips per month, with a goal of selling up to 10 million devices per month over a 12-month period, based on customer feedback. He said Charlie’s planned to launch the product in the next 2 to 3 months and that Ispire did not expect an immediate lift in the current quarter but anticipated results beginning the next quarter.
Asked about adoption abroad, Wang clarified that no country has implemented the company’s age-gating technology yet. He said Ispire has been working with regulators in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the U.K., but said he could not name specific countries due to NDAs. He added that some governments are interested not only in consumer safety and youth prevention, but also in tax collection that can be undermined by illicit trade.
Wang also said the company expects to announce a “significant development deal” related to IKE age-gating technology with a “leading global nicotine company” in the coming weeks, describing it in response to an analyst question as having “much greater strategic and financial impact” than the Charlie’s partnership.
G-Mesh technology and Malaysia facility expansion
Beyond IKE Tech, Wang highlighted G-Mesh vaping hardware built with “superconductive glass,” which he said provides higher purity compared with traditional ceramic or cotton cores. He said the company was in discussions with medium- and large-sized nicotine companies and planned to provide updates in coming months regarding a potential licensing and/or partnership agreement.
Wang also said the company’s Malaysia manufacturing facility build-out remains on track to ramp production in fiscal 2026. He said the site could expand to 80 production lines from the current 6 lines, calling it a material capacity increase aligned with Ispire’s focus on Malaysia as a production center.
In closing remarks, Wang reiterated that management believes future quarters will show top-line growth, improved cash flow consistency, and better bottom-line performance as cost reductions and customer quality initiatives continue through fiscal 2026.
About Ispire Technology (NASDAQ:ISPR)
Ispire Technology Inc researches, develops, designs, commercializes, sales, markets, and distributes e-cigarettes and cannabis vaping products worldwide. The company was founded in 2019 and is based in Los Angeles, California. Ispire Technology Inc operates as a subsidiary of Pride Worldwide Investment Limited.
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