ProPetro (NYSE:PUMP) executives said the company closed 2025 with a strong fourth quarter despite a sharp slowdown in Permian Basin completion activity and ongoing uncertainty in energy markets, while also highlighting early commercial momentum and long-term growth targets for its ProPower distributed generation business.
Market backdrop and operating posture
Chief Executive Officer Sam Sledge described 2025 as a year “defined by uncertainty,” citing a “significant slowdown in completions activity” and estimating the Permian Basin is operating with about 70 full-time frac fleets, down from roughly 90 to 100 fleets a year earlier. Sledge also pointed to tariff impacts and OPEC+ production increases as factors that pressured commodity prices and made operators more cautious with budgets.
Fourth-quarter financial results and cash flow
Chief Financial Officer Caleb Weatherl said fourth-quarter 2025 results reflected disciplined cost control and “industrialization” of operations. ProPetro reported:
- Total revenue: $290 million, down 1% from the third quarter
- Net income: $1 million, or $0.01 per diluted share, versus a net loss of $2 million, or $0.02 per diluted share, in the third quarter
- Adjusted EBITDA: $51 million, representing 18% of revenue and up 45% sequentially (including $17 million of lease expense related to the electric fleet)
Weatherl said net cash provided by operating activities was $81 million and net cash used in investing activities was $39 million. He also reported “free cash flow for our completions business” of $98 million, helped by strong EBITDA and reduced completion capital spending. Working capital tailwinds added $28 million of cash, while the company generated $14 million from select asset sales and received $11 million from a note receivable tied to the 2024 sale of its Vernal, Utah cementing operation.
Capital expenditures paid in the quarter were $64 million and capital expenditures incurred were $71 million. Weatherl said about $12 million supported maintenance in the completions business and roughly $59 million supported ProPower orders. He noted some ProPower spending was accelerated due to equipment deliveries occurring “on time or ahead of schedule.”
2026 capital plans, liquidity, and fleet investment priorities
Management guided to 2026 capital expenditures of $390 million to $435 million. Weatherl said the completions business is expected to account for $140 million to $160 million, including $40 million to $50 million related to lease buyouts for a portion of the company’s FORCE electric fleet portfolio. ProPetro’s five FORCE electric fleet leases were structured with three-year terms and options to buy out or extend, and Weatherl said the company expects to buy out all five fleets beginning in late 2026 and continuing through 2028. He said buying out the fleets would reduce lease expense and increase commercial flexibility.
Within the 2026 completions capital range, Sledge said the company expects targeted spending to:
- Refurbish a portion of its existing Tier 4 DGB fleet
- Invest in fleet automation technology
- Make “measured” investments in Direct Drive Gas Frac units
On activity, Sledge said the company expects about 11 active frac fleets in the first quarter of 2026, but added that winter weather in late January had a “significant impact” on activity and is expected to “meaningfully affect” first-quarter profitability.
For liquidity, Weatherl said ProPetro ended 2025 with $91 million of cash and $45 million borrowed under its ABL credit facility, for total liquidity of $205 million (including $114 million of available ABL capacity). He added that as of Jan. 31, 2026, cash was $236 million with the same $45 million of ABL borrowings, bringing total liquidity to $325 million. He attributed the increase primarily to about $163 million of net proceeds from a January equity offering.
Weatherl also referenced financing flexibility from an expanded $157 million facility with Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation and a $350 million leasing financing facility secured in December with Stonebriar Commercial Finance, which management said it will use as needed.
ProPower growth, contracts, and end-market mix
Sledge called 2025 “an exciting year” for ProPower, saying the business reached approximately 240 MW of committed capacity and deployed its first assets in the field. He said this total includes recent contract wins supporting production operations for a Permian E&P customer since the company’s prior update in December.
He added that the company ordered an additional 190 MW of equipment, bringing total delivered or on-order capacity to about 550 MW. Management said the equipment portfolio is split about 70% high-efficiency natural gas reciprocating engine generators and 30% low-emission modular turbines. ProPower expects all units to be delivered by year-end 2027, with contracts expected to be secured ahead of delivery. Sledge said expected total cost averages about $1.1 million per MW including balance of plant.
Management reaffirmed its longer-term targets of at least 750 MW delivered by year-end 2028 and 1 GW or more by year-end 2030. On the call, Sledge said he expects the first half of 2026 to focus on “de-risking deployments and establishing a strong operational foundation,” with ProPower expected to begin contributing “meaningful earnings” in the second half of 2026.
In the Q&A, Sledge said ProPower is taking a “portfolio approach” across oil and gas, data centers, and industrial customers. He said the mix is expected to evolve toward a larger share of non-oil-and-gas work over time, noting that such projects can be “bigger and chunkier” with potentially longer time horizons. Asked about contracting cadence, he said that to meet the company’s five-year plan, investors could expect contracting “that level” of equipment on “almost an annual basis,” while also acknowledging that a single large non-oil-and-gas contract could significantly alter the timeline and mix.
Executives also discussed pricing and returns in data center opportunities, describing a balancing act between contract duration, site size, and return metrics. When asked whether longer-term contracts could carry slightly lower returns, management said it was possible depending on contract length and other variables. On equipment costs, ProPower leadership said the $1.1 million per MW estimate applies to current modular equipment used in both oil and gas and data center applications, but noted that larger, more infrastructure-heavy technologies could require higher capital investment and longer contract tenures.
Separately, Sledge reiterated his view that pressure pumping attrition could structurally tighten the market when activity returns, saying it would be “a major stretch” for the industry to get back to 90 to 100 Permian fleets. He said ProPetro expects to be positioned for that outcome with its portfolio that includes electric, diesel, dual-fuel, and direct-drive offerings.
About ProPetro (NYSE:PUMP)
ProPetro Holding Corp is a publicly traded oilfield services company that specializes in hydraulic fracturing and well completion solutions for exploration and production operators. Headquartered in Midland, Texas, the company delivers a comprehensive suite of pressure pumping services designed to optimize reservoir stimulation and enhance hydrocarbon recovery. Its integrated approach encompasses well design, proppant selection, fluid systems and pressure management to support clients’ development targets across unconventional plays.
The company’s core offerings include high-pressure fracturing, coiled tubing, cementing, acidizing and flowback services, all supported by in-house logistics and digital monitoring tools.
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