Executive Summary

CoreWeave delivered a breakout Q1 2025 with revenue of $0.982B, up 420% YoY, and record adjusted EBITDA of $606M (62% margin); however, GAAP diluted EPS was -$1.49 as interest expense and IPO-driven stock-based comp weighed on GAAP results .
Wall Street revenue estimates were beaten by ~14% ($0.982B actual vs ~$0.860B consensus); Primary EPS missed consensus (actual -$0.609 vs -$0.117 consensus) as vendor term changes reduced capitalized interest and increased period interest expense .
Backlog and capacity set the near-term growth path: revenue backlog was $25.9B at Q1, rising to $30.1B in Q2 and $55.6B in Q3; active power increased from ~420MW in Q1 to ~590MW by Q3, with contracted power expanding from ~1.6GW to ~2.9GW .
Management initiated guidance (Q2 revenue $1.06–$1.10B; FY25 revenue $4.9–$5.1B) and accelerated capex (Q2: $3.0–$3.5B; FY25: $20–$23B) to meet demand; short-term stock catalysts include continued revenue beats, backlog expansion, and GB200/Blackwell ramp, partially offset by elevated interest expense and margin dilution near-term due to capacity build .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well
- “Outstanding Q1 financial performance” with record revenue and adjusted operating income; CEO: “Demand for our platform is robust and accelerating… We are scaling as fast as possible to capture that demand. The future runs on CoreWeave.” .
- Strategic wins: OpenAI deal up to $11.9B (added $11.2B to backlog reported) and partnership with IBM for Granite; MLPerf benchmarks and first-mover status on NVIDIA GB200 instances bolster tech leadership .
- Revenue beat attribution: “concerted strategic effort… to build and scale and deliver compute more quickly” pulled-forward delivery against committed contracts (explains beat vs consensus) .
What Went Wrong
- GAAP EPS miss versus consensus driven by higher interest expense from improved vendor terms (less capitalized interest) and IPO-related stock-based comp; CFO guided Q2 interest expense to remain elevated ($260–$300M) .
- Operating margin compressed to -3% GAAP (vs 9% prior-year) given heavy capacity build, with management warning near-term margins diluted by accelerated investments despite strong adjusted margins .
- Customer concentration remains a focus for analysts; management reiterated efforts to diversify with enterprises (Weights & Biases acquisition aids go-to-market), but outsized clients remain intrinsic to AI infrastructure contracts .

Financial Results

Metric	Q1 2025	Q2 2025	Q3 2025
Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.982	$1.213	$1.365
GAAP Operating Margin (%)	-3%	2%	4%
Adjusted Operating Income ($USD Millions)	$162.634	$199.788	$217.154
Adjusted Operating Margin (%)	17%	16%	16%
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$606.131	$753.169	$838.124
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)	62%	62%	61%
GAAP Diluted EPS ($USD)	-$1.49	-$0.60	-$0.22
Net Loss Margin (%)	-32%	-24%	-8%

Segment breakdown: CoreWeave reports one operating segment (consolidated) .

KPIs and Capacity

KPI	Q1 2025	Q2 2025	Q3 2025
Revenue Backlog ($USD Billions)	$25.9	$30.1	$55.6
Active Power (MW)	~420	~470	~590
Contracted Power (GW)	~1.6	~2.2	~2.9
Purchases of Property & Equipment ($USD Billions, proxy for capex)	$1.407	$2.453	$3.279

Vs. Estimates (S&P Global)

Metric	Consensus	Actual	Surprise
Revenue ($USD Billions)	$0.860*	$0.982	+$0.122B / +14.2%
Primary EPS ($USD)	-$0.117*	-$0.609*	-$0.492 (miss)

Values with asterisk (*) retrieved from S&P Global.

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Revenue ($USD Billions)	Q2 2025	N/A	$1.06–$1.10	Initiated
Adjusted Operating Income ($USD Millions)	Q2 2025	N/A	$140–$170	Initiated
Interest Expense ($USD Millions)	Q2 2025	N/A	$260–$300	Initiated
CapEx ($USD Billions)	Q2 2025	N/A	$3.0–$3.5	Raised vs prior run-rate
Revenue ($USD Billions)	FY 2025	N/A	$4.9–$5.1	Initiated
Adjusted Operating Income ($USD Millions)	FY 2025	N/A	$800–$830	Initiated
CapEx ($USD Billions)	FY 2025	N/A	$20–$23	Increased
Stock-Based Compensation	FY 2025	N/A	“Slightly elevated” post-IPO	Initiated

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q4’24/Q3’24)	Current Period (Q1 2025)	Trend
AI infrastructure leadership (GB200/Blackwell, MLPerf)	Not available in SEC filings (company private)	First to deploy GB200 NVL72; MLPerf v5.0 benchmarks; platform differentiation	Strengthening
Demand & Backlog	Not available	OpenAI up to $11.9B; backlog $25.9B; later adds $4B expansion (Q2)	Accelerating
Enterprise adoption & W&B acquisition	Not available	W&B acquisition to extend software stack, 1,400+ customers; enterprise traction	Broadening
Supply chain/tariffs	Not available	Small tariff-related cost increases; immaterial impact expected	Manageable
Capacity & power	Not available	~420MW active; ~1.6GW contracted; power additions planned	Scaling fast
Financing & cost of capital	Not available	Revolver upsized to $1.5B; IPO proceeds; aim to lower cost of capital	Improving
Interest expense & capitalization	Not available	Vendor term improvements reduce capitalized interest; higher period interest	Near-term headwind

Management Commentary

CEO: “Demand for our platform is robust and accelerating… We are scaling as fast as possible to capture that demand. The future runs on CoreWeave.” .
CEO: “We were the first to make NVIDIA’s GB200 NVL72 instances generally available and begin ramping Blackwell revenue in the first quarter.” .
CFO: “Our revenue backlog… was $25.9 billion, up 63% year-over-year… OpenAI strategic deal… up to $11.9 billion… plus a recent $4 billion expansion signed in Q2.” .
CFO: “Interest expense… higher than expectations due to improved vendor payment terms… lowering the amount of interest cost capitalized… expect those to continue through the year.” .
CFO: “We expect Q2 revenue $1.06–$1.1 billion… Q2 adjusted operating income $140–$170 million… Q2 capex $3–$3.5 billion… FY25 revenue $4.9–$5.1 billion; FY25 adjusted operating income $800–$830 million; capex $20–$23 billion.” .

Q&A Highlights

Revenue beat mechanics: Management pulled forward infrastructure delivery to contracted customers, enabling a ~14% top-line beat vs consensus .
Backlog vs RPO accounting: OpenAI deal excluded from RPO pending final accounting; does not affect revenue timing or economics .
Customer concentration and diversification: No single entity >50% of backlog at Q1; enterprise pipeline expanding with W&B aiding go-to-market .
Tariffs and input costs: Observed small increases in certain components; expected immaterial P&L impact; monitoring and working with suppliers .
Interest expense drivers: Fewer days between payment and in-service reduced capitalized interest; higher debt linked to capex build; cost of capital trending down post-IPO .

Estimates Context

Q1 2025 revenue beat: Actual $0.982B vs ~$0.860B consensus (+14.2%); driven by accelerated delivery against contracted demand .
Q1 2025 Primary EPS miss: Actual -$0.609 vs -$0.117 consensus, reflecting higher period interest and IPO-related stock-based compensation; adjusted profitability strong (Adj. EBITDA margin 62%) .
Estimate breadth: 13 revenue and 13 EPS estimates contributed to consensus; continued coverage build post-IPO*.

Values retrieved from S&P Global.

Key Takeaways for Investors

Revenue growth visibility is high: multi-year contracted backlog ($25.9B at Q1; $30.1B Q2; $55.6B Q3) underpins forward revenue, with OpenAI and other hyperscaler/enterprise wins anchoring capacity ramp .
Near-term margins likely diluted by aggressive build-out (capex $3–$3.5B in Q2; $20–$23B in FY25), but adjusted margins remain robust (Adj. operating ~16–17%; Adj. EBITDA ~61–62%) and should normalize as assets enter service .
Interest expense is the primary GAAP headwind; watch vendor term dynamics and debt mix/cost-of-capital initiatives (revolver upsized; term loans refinanced), which can improve EPS trajectory over time .
Technical leadership (GB200/Blackwell firsts, MLPerf records) is a competitive moat that can sustain pricing power and win rate in frontier AI workloads .
Enterprise adoption and software stack expansion (Weights & Biases) broaden TAM, reduce concentration risk, and strengthen go-to-market leverage .
Trading lens: Continued revenue beats and backlog expansions are likely positive catalysts; monitor quarterly interest expense and capex execution for sentiment shifts; guidance updates (Q2/FY25) provide checkpoints .
Risk watch: Tariff/macro costs (currently immaterial), execution on rapid capacity deployment, and accounting treatment timing (e.g., RPO recognition for large deals) .

Search note: No SEC 8-K/transcript filings found for 2024 quarters; trend analysis uses Q2 and Q3 2025 filings and transcripts for trajectory comparisons.

CoreWeave, Inc. (CRWV)·Q1 2025 Earnings Summary