New York, May 21, 2026, 12:14 (EDT)
- Ondas shares dropped roughly 3.5% at midday after the company wrapped up its Omnisys deal.
- The deal uses all stock. A related prospectus registered 3.10 million seller shares for resale.
- Investors see the usual trade-off here—more exposure to defense software, but also more stock supply and added risk from integration.
Ondas Inc. stock slipped Thursday after the company wrapped up its $196.6 million all-stock deal to buy Omnisys Ltd. of Israel. The company aims to expand in AI battlefield software with the move. Shares last traded at $9.035, off 32.5 cents, or roughly 3.5%. Volume was around 24.4 million shares.
Investors are focusing on Ondas as the company tries to stitch together its recent deals into a wider defense play, and with new Ondas shares likely hitting the market. In a Form 8-K filed Thursday, Ondas said it picked up all of Omnisys, paying in shares. $25.5 million in stock was issued at closing, $3.5 million went into escrow, and another $142.5 million will be paid in five tranches.
A different prospectus supplement lists 3,098,288 shares put up for resale by selling stockholders. Ondas said it won’t get proceeds from these sales. That could matter to traders who are watching stock supply and aren’t focused on new funds for the company.
Omnisys supplies Ondas with software called Battle Resource Optimization, or BRO. The software collects input from sensors, command tools and platforms, and is meant to help operators pick and sync their actions live. Ondas described BRO as “vendor-agnostic,” so it works across gear from multiple suppliers.
Eric Brock, chief executive, called BRO a “proven, battle-tested software platform.” Oshri Lugassy, who is co-CEO of Ondas Autonomous Systems, said the buy lets the company push “true closed-loop operations.” Omnisys CEO Ofer Yarden said the Israeli firm was “excited to join Ondas” and planned to use its network to bring BRO into more international defense markets. ACCESS Newswire
Needham kept its Buy on Ondas with a $23 target earlier this week, saying Omnisys might tack on $30 million to $40 million in pro forma 2026 revenue. The firm added there could be more in 2027 if allied-market adoption grows. Needham said the deal adds a software orchestration layer to Ondas’ autonomous systems business.
Ondas announced the deal after a big jump in first-quarter revenue. The company said revenue reached $50.1 million in the March quarter, up from $4.3 million a year ago. Ondas also raised its full-year 2026 revenue target to at least $390 million. Pro forma backlog came in at $457 million, which is work under contract not yet booked as revenue.
Growth figures are muddied by other factors. Ondas posted an operating loss of $42.7 million in Q1. Net income was boosted by non-cash effects from warrant revaluation and the split-off of Ondas Networks. Adjusted EBITDA stayed negative at $10.9 million.
Small-cap drone and unmanned systems stocks traded mixed to weak. AeroVironment was almost flat at $163.59. Red Cat fell to $8.845. Kratos Defense lost ground at $54.52. The action pointed to something more specific than a sector-wide drone selloff after the Ondas move.
AeroVironment is up against a crowded field. The company sells unmanned aircraft, counter-drone and autonomy gear. Red Cat offers drones and robots for defense and security work. Kratos develops tactical unmanned aerial systems for the U.S. Defense Department and its allies.
Ondas may execute on its strategy, but the stock faces headwinds. Delays with integration, choppy defense order timing, ongoing cash burn, or Omnisys holders selling could all put pressure on the shares, even though daily sale limits are in place. The company’s prospectus points out there’s a high degree of risk in the stock.
Wall Street is pricing the deal as helpful, but it comes with a cost. U.S. stocks were open Thursday. NYSE will close next on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25.
