TechnipFMC (NYSE:FTI) executives highlighted strong full-year 2025 performance and an upbeat outlook for 2026 during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call, pointing to continued momentum in Subsea orders, margin expansion initiatives, and a commitment to returning the majority of free cash flow to shareholders.
2025 results: higher revenue, EBITDA, free cash flow, and shareholder returns
Chair and CEO Doug Pferdehirt said the company closed 2025 with “solid operational momentum,” reporting total company inbound of $11.2 billion and year-end backlog of $16.6 billion. Total company revenue grew 9% to $9.9 billion, while adjusted EBITDA improved 33% to $1.8 billion compared with the prior year.
In the fourth quarter, cash flow from operating activities was $454 million and capital expenditures were $94 million, producing free cash flow of $359 million. The company repurchased $168 million of stock and paid $20 million in dividends in the quarter. Cash and cash equivalents ended the year at $1.0 billion, and the company reported a net cash position of $602 million.
Subsea: $10.1B inbound in 2025 and a growing opportunity set
Pferdehirt said Subsea orders were $2.3 billion in the fourth quarter, bringing full-year Subsea inbound to $10.1 billion, led by iEPCI projects. He cited bp’s Tiber award as the most recent iEPCI contract in the Paleogene and noted that TechnipFMC has been awarded five of the six “20K” projects sanctioned to date.
Subsea backlog ended 2025 at $15.9 billion, with legacy projects representing “less than 10%” of the total, according to management. Pferdehirt said the company expects $10 billion of Subsea inbound in the current year and anticipates further backlog growth. He added that direct awards, iEPCI, and Subsea services accounted for more than 80% of total Subsea inbound in 2025.
Management also emphasized a shift in customer behavior toward a “portfolio approach” to offshore development—executing multiple projects in parallel and standardizing equipment and project methodology. Pferdehirt pointed to bp’s simultaneous execution of Tiber and Kaskida as an example, arguing that portfolio development improves integration and standardization, accelerating time to first hydrocarbons and improving economics.
He said the company’s Subsea Opportunities List increased for the sixth consecutive quarter and now reflects approximately $29 billion of opportunities over a 24-month view, the “highest level ever recorded,” even after a “significant level” of awards during the period. Pferdehirt also said he expects the expanding and “accelerating” opportunity list to be reflected in order growth in 2027 and beyond.
Segment performance: Q4 softness in Subsea, continued improvement in Surface
In Subsea, fourth-quarter revenue was $2.2 billion, down 5% sequentially, primarily due to lower activity in the North Sea and Latin America, partially offset by higher activity in Asia Pacific. Adjusted EBITDA was $416 million, down 18% sequentially, which management attributed to seasonally lower vessel-based activity and reduced fleet availability due to scheduled maintenance. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 18.9%. For the full year, Subsea revenue rose 11% and Subsea adjusted EBITDA margin increased 340 basis points to 20.1%.
In Surface Technologies, fourth-quarter revenue was $323 million, down 2% sequentially, driven by lower activity in North America and timing of project-related activity in the Middle East, partially offset by higher activity in Asia Pacific. Adjusted EBITDA increased 8% sequentially to $58 million, helped by higher services activity in the Middle East and operational efficiencies tied to transformation initiatives. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 18%, up 160 basis points sequentially. For the full year, Surface adjusted EBITDA margin improved 170 basis points to 16.7% with revenue “essentially flat.”
Responding to a question on Surface margin improvement, Pferdehirt said the company “high-graded” the business by focusing on the right customers, geographies, and technologies, emphasizing “quality and not quantity.” He added that about 65% of Surface Technologies is now in the international portfolio, and the segment continues to benefit from local content and manufacturing investments in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, while North America remains a challenging market.
2026 guidance: higher Subsea margins, disciplined capex, and shareholder returns
Alf said the company updated its previous Subsea guidance following restructuring actions tied to simplification and industrialization initiatives. For 2026, Subsea revenue is expected to be $9.4 billion, with adjusted EBITDA margin of 21.5% at the midpoint, implying 16% growth in Subsea adjusted EBITDA versus 2025. For the first quarter, management expects Subsea revenue to increase low single digits sequentially and adjusted EBITDA margin to improve by approximately 50 basis points from the fourth quarter’s 18.9%, citing typical vessel maintenance seasonality.
For Surface Technologies, 2026 revenue guidance is “just over” $1.2 billion, with adjusted EBITDA margin of 17.25% at the midpoint. First-quarter Surface revenue is expected to decline approximately 10% from the fourth quarter, with adjusted EBITDA margin around 16.5%.
Corporate expense is guided to $120 million for the year, with roughly $40 million expected in the first quarter. Capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $340 million—just over 3% of revenue—consistent with what management described as a “disciplined, asset-light approach.”
TechnipFMC expects 2026 free cash flow in a range of $1.3 billion to $1.45 billion, which implies about 65% free cash flow conversion at the midpoint. Alf reiterated the company expects to return at least 70% of free cash flow to shareholders in 2026 through dividends and share repurchases.
Looking at the broader earnings power discussion, management repeatedly emphasized that margin expansion is tied to reducing cycle time and improving delivery certainty rather than pricing alone. Pferdehirt said the company is expanding configure-to-order applications beyond seabed equipment into the “water column” (SURF), describing the margin opportunity there as “as substantial” as what the company has seen from Subsea 2.0 on the seabed, though he declined to provide a specific timeline for updates.
About TechnipFMC (NYSE:FTI)
TechnipFMC is an integrated oilfield services and technology company that designs, manufactures and delivers systems and services for the energy industry. The company’s activities span the full lifecycle of oil and gas projects, with capabilities in subsea production systems, surface wellhead and intervention equipment, and onshore/offshore engineering and construction. TechnipFMC combines engineering and project management with fabrication, installation and maintenance services to help operators develop and produce hydrocarbon resources.
Its product and service portfolio includes subsea hardware such as trees, manifolds, umbilicals, risers and flowlines, as well as surface equipment for drilling, completions and well intervention.
-limited-logo-1200x675.png?v=20210413131346&h=45&w=95&zc=2){kind=logo}
