Iren vs. AeroVironment: A Comparison of Recent Revenue Trajectories
Key Points
AeroVironment currently demonstrates a larger and more stable revenue base than Iren.
Over the last eight quarters, AeroVironment generated consistent quarter-over-quarter growth before a recent surge, while Iren experienced an initial expansion followed by a trend of sequential declines.
Investors should watch whether the revenue gap between the two companies continues to widen or starts to narrow in upcoming quarters.
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Iren: Managing Recent Revenue Declines
Iren (NASDAQ:IREN) primarily operates a vertically integrated data center business focused on mining Bitcoin.
It signed a five-year, $3.4 billion infrastructure cloud services contract in May 2026 with Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA), and reported a net loss of almost $245 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2026.
AeroVironment: Scaling Up Its Revenue Base
AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) develops, produces, and services a diverse array of robotic systems for governmental and commercial entities globally.
It secured a $500 million counter-drone contract with the U.S. Army and faced investor lawsuits regarding a canceled space program, while reporting an approximately 40% gross margin for the quarter ended April 30, 2026.
Why Revenue Matters for Retail Investors
Revenue here refers to the data provider's standardized income statement revenue line item, and this metric helps investors gauge a business’s overall size and sales trajectory.
Quarterly Revenue for Iren and AeroVironment
| Quarter (Period End) | Iren Revenue | AeroVironment Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2024 | $52.8 million (period ended Sept. 2024) | $189.5 million (period ended July 2024) |
| Q4 2024 | $116.1 million (period ended Dec. 2024) | $188.5 million (period ended Oct. 2024) |
| Q1 2025 | $144.8 million (period ended March 2025) | $167.6 million (period ended Jan. 2025) |
| Q2 2025 | $187.3 million (period ended June 2025) | $275.1 million (period ended April 2025) |
| Q3 2025 | $240.3 million (period ended Sept. 2025) | $454.7 million (period ended Aug. 2025) |
| Q4 2025 | $184.7 million (period ended Dec. 2025) | $472.5 million (period ended Nov. 2025) |
| Q1 2026 | $144.8 million (period ended March 2026) | $408.0 million (period ended Jan. 2026) |
| Q2 2026 | Not yet reported | $641.6 million (period ended April 2026) |
Data source: Company filings.
Foolish Take
That Iren has shifted it business focus from crypto-mining to AI is a major shift that investors should examine carefully. Essentially, Iren management said it believes shareholder capital is better used by pivoting to AI services rather than focusing on digital currencies. To a skeptic, that can seem like trend chasing.
The dangers of that move are evident in Iren’s revenue trend, as shown in the table. Sales peaked in the third quarter of 2025 and have declined for two straight quarters. Management has made big promises to reach an annual recurring revenue run rate of more than $3 billion by the end of the current fiscal year. That should show a reversal of the recent downtrend in sales, if it is to be achieved. Expect the trend or Iren sales to be higher quarter after quarter, if so. It will be just an AI also-ran if not.
By comparison, AeroVironment is a leader in the business of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The need for more UAVs is one of the few pieces of common ground among the two political parties of the U.S. The revenue trend shown in the chart indicates it’s good business.
Last year, AeroVironment boosted revenues by acquiring upstart competitor BlueHalo, incorporating that firm’s AI and counter-drone technologies into its top offerings for the Defense Department. The U.S. Army also awarded AeroVironment a five-year $1 billion contract for Switchblade in 2025. It’s a loitering munitions drone that hovers over an area before crashing into a target.
All of that is positive for AeroVironment, although its future revenue trend could become lumpy and seasonal due to bulk payments under contracts. That lumpiness is seen in the downtick in Q1 2026 sales, but that is typical — look at the downtick in Q1 2025 on the left side.
Data source: Company filings. Data as of July 31, 2026.
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Brendan Coffey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends AeroVironment and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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