Ameresco (NYSE:AMRC) reported fourth-quarter results that management said capped a year of strong performance, with annual results reaching the mid to high end of the company’s revenue and profit guidance. Chairman and CEO George Sakellaris credited “excellent execution” and recurring contributions from the company’s energy assets and operations and maintenance (O&M) businesses, noting the performance came despite concerns over potential Department of Government efficiency actions early in the year and a six-week federal government shutdown in the fourth quarter.
Sakellaris said results were “broad-based,” with growth across all three core business lines and “strong growth” from European operations. He highlighted record backlog conversion during the year, with the company converting $1.5 billion of project backlog into revenue. Ameresco also saw “meaningful project scope increases” in federal backlog, helping lift total awarded backlog to more than $2.5 billion, up 13% from the prior year.
Record quarterly revenue and margin expansion
Gross margin was 16.2%, up sequentially and year-over-year. Chiplock said the improvement reflected better project mix, higher quality backlog, and disciplined cost management. Operating expenses were $50.9 million versus $47.8 million a year earlier, driven by targeted investments in people, project development, and execution support. Chiplock emphasized that operating expenses are growing “materially slower than gross profit,” preserving operating leverage.
Net income attributable to common shareholders was $18.4 million, with GAAP EPS of $0.34 and non-GAAP EPS of $0.39. Adjusted EBITDA was $70 million, representing a 12% margin. Chiplock noted that the prior year’s fourth-quarter Adjusted EBITDA included a $38 million gain from the sale of the AEG business at the end of 2024.
Energy assets and recurring O&M revenue
Energy asset revenue increased 5% year-over-year, supported by growth in the operating asset portfolio. Chiplock said Ameresco placed 87 megawatts (MW) into operation during the quarter, including the company’s ninth renewable natural gas (RNG) facility, a large military solar-plus-storage installation, and the Nucor battery energy storage system (BESS). For the year, Ameresco placed 121 MW of energy assets into operation, exceeding guidance, bringing total operating assets to 838 MW.
The company also added 30 MW to energy assets in development, which Chiplock characterized as part of a disciplined approach to maintaining and backfilling the pipeline. Recurring O&M revenue rose 11% as more long-term service agreements were attached to completed projects. Ameresco’s long-term O&M revenue backlog stands at approximately $1.5 billion, Chiplock said.
Chiplock said the company now has “over $10 billion in long-term revenue visibility” when combining project backlog with future revenue streams from recurring O&M and operating energy assets.
Europe expansion and diversification
Sakellaris pointed to Europe as a “real success story,” describing Ameresco’s strategy as building localized presence through opportunistic acquisitions and partnerships. He cited the acquisition of Italy-based Enerqos and a focus on Southern and Eastern Europe, where the company sees higher growth and fewer entrenched competitors.
He also highlighted Ameresco’s 51%-owned joint venture with Greece’s TERNA Group, formed in April 2023 to pursue utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage opportunities. After success in Greece, Sakellaris said the JV has expanded, including “a few recent large wins in Romania,” and he expects continued growth both organically and via acquisitions and partnerships. Sakellaris added that Europe provides diversification because demand drivers there are not subject to the same U.S. political and policy variables.
During Q&A, Sakellaris reiterated that Ameresco is looking for accretive, strategically located acquisitions in Europe and expects to pursue opportunities with Sunel across additional countries, including through RFPs. He said the next wave of growth in Europe includes battery storage, given the volume of solar and wind installations across the region.
2026 outlook and key call themes
For 2026, Chiplock guided to approximately $2.1 billion of revenue and $283 million of adjusted EBITDA at the midpoint, representing growth of 9% and 19%, respectively. He said the year is expected to follow the company’s historical seasonal pattern, with about 60% of revenue weighted to the second half. Ameresco expects first-quarter revenue and adjusted EBITDA to be generally consistent with Q1 of last year, reflecting normal project timing and severe weather that has impacted execution across regions.
Chiplock said Q1 EPS is expected to be lower year-over-year, primarily due to higher interest and depreciation expenses tied to the growing energy asset portfolio and continued investment to scale the business. He also discussed the company’s use of joint ventures, noting that where Ameresco has control it consolidates 100% of revenue and expenses, while a portion of adjusted EBITDA and net income is allocated to JV partners as non-controlling interest. The company provided estimated ranges for income attributable to non-controlling interest in its 2026 guidance, he said.
Other topics discussed on the call included:
- Energy asset timing and contributions: Chief Investment Officer Joshua Baribeau said asset placements tend to be weighted to the middle and back half of the year, influenced by interconnection queues and development cycles. He added that assets placed in service in a given year typically do not contribute meaningfully until the following year, meaning 2026 results will benefit from 2025 placements, while 2026 placements would more meaningfully impact 2027.
- Weather impacts: Management said severe weather affected access to certain sites and impacted execution timing. Sakellaris added that three RNG assets experienced a freeze-up, which he said is “not really recoverable.”
- Margin drivers: Chiplock attributed expected margin momentum to disciplined project selection, pricing, and cost management. He also said larger, more complex infrastructure projects could carry somewhat higher margins.
- Data center demand: Sakellaris said the company is seeing more behind-the-meter data center requests than it can handle and believes Ameresco has a strategic advantage due to its ability to package firm power, storage, and microgrid solutions. Management said conversion of that pipeline into backlog will depend on de-risking engineering, permitting, sourcing, financing, and commercial structuring.
- RNG market and potential M&A: Sakellaris said Ameresco has “at least 10” RNG facilities in backlog to be built over the next few years, described ongoing project opportunities, and said the company remains open to M&A but had nothing mature enough to discuss.
- Tariffs and contracting: Management said some newer contracts include protections such as tariff-related price adjustment mechanisms, along with contingency planning.
Chiplock said 2025 demonstrated the “durability” of Ameresco’s model through growth, backlog expansion, margin improvement, and financial discipline. Sakellaris added that Ameresco plans targeted investments in technical innovation and resources to execute larger projects, while positioning for growth in areas such as infrastructure projects, Europe, data centers, storage, and resiliency solutions.
About Ameresco (NYSE:AMRC)
Ameresco, Inc is a leading independent provider of comprehensive energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions for businesses and governments across North America, Europe and other select markets. Its integrated services portfolio includes energy efficiency retrofits, infrastructure upgrades, distributed generation systems and facility-scale renewable projects. Leveraging performance-based contracting models, Ameresco designs, finances, installs and maintains energy improvements intended to reduce operational costs, mitigate environmental impact and enhance resiliency for its clients.
Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts, Ameresco has completed thousands of projects spanning solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, landfill gas?to?energy, energy storage and microgrid installations.
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