Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

When you look at the resilience of America's coastlines and the depth of its vital shipping channels, do you know the company that has been doing the heavy lifting since 1890? Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) is that essential player, recently reporting $195.2 million in revenue and $17.7 million in net income for the third quarter of 2025 alone. With a massive dredging backlog of $934.5 million-over 84% of which is in high-margin capital and coastal protection projects-GLDD is not just maintaining old infrastructure but is defintely building the future of U.S. offshore wind and LNG terminals; but how exactly does a dredging company turn sand and rock into such a strong financial position?

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) History

You want to understand how Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation, the largest dredging services provider in the U.S., got to its current position. It started as a small marine construction partnership in Chicago and evolved through a century of massive infrastructure projects, now focusing on port deepening and the high-growth offshore wind market.

Given Company's Founding Timeline

Year established

The company was established in 1890 as a partnership named Lydon & Drews.

Original location

Operations began in Chicago, Illinois, with an initial office in the Unity Building on Dearborn Street.

Founding team members

The firm was co-founded by William A. Lydon, an engineer who served as the first president, and Fred C. Drews, who was the general superintendent with prior marine construction experience.

Initial capital/funding

Specific details on the initial capital amount are not readily available in historical records, but the company's first contract-digging a brick-lined water tunnel and crib under Lake Michigan for Chicago's water supply-was a massive undertaking that could have made or broken the fledgling company.

Given Company's Evolution Milestones

Given Company's Transformative Moments

If you look at the company's 135-year history, three decisions defintely stand out as truly transformative, moving it from a regional player to the national leader it is today.

The first big shift was the move to a national, then international, footprint. After the 1905 incorporation, the company quickly expanded its focus beyond the Great Lakes, establishing an Atlantic Division office in Manhattan by 1920. This set the stage for later international work, like the excavation for the Øresund Fixed Link between Denmark and Sweden in the late 1990s.

The second major pivot was embracing the massive LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) export market. In 2023, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation secured the largest contract in its history-performing essential improvements for NextDecade Corporation's Rio Grande LNG facility in Brownsville, Texas. This project, which began in late 2024, is a huge revenue driver and validates their focus on private-sector capital dredging.

The third, and most recent, transformation is the strategic push into the offshore energy market, specifically offshore wind. This is a clear action to diversify revenue away from purely government-funded dredging. The company completed a $550 million new build program, with key vessel deliveries in 2025:

• Delivered the new hopper dredge, Amelia Island, in August 2025, which immediately started work.
• Launched the Acadia, the first U.S.-flagged, Jones Act-compliant subsea rock installation vessel, which is expected to commence operations in early 2026 with secured contracts.

This forward-looking strategy is already paying off. As of September 30, 2025, the dredging backlog stood at a robust $934.5 million, with an additional $73.0 million in offshore energy backlog. For the third quarter of 2025 alone, the company reported revenue of $195.2 million and net income of $17.7 million, showing strong execution on these complex, high-margin projects. That's a solid quarter. For a deeper dive into the current ownership structure and investment thesis, you should check out Exploring Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Ownership Structure

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) is a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ exchange, but its ownership structure is heavily influenced by a major private equity firm and large institutional investors, not just retail shareholders.

This hybrid structure means a significant portion of the company's strategic direction is governed by a few dominant shareholders, which can lead to more focused, long-term decision-making, but also less liquidity in the public float (the shares available for trading).

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Current Status

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation is a publicly held company, trading under the ticker GLDD on the NASDAQ Stock Market. This status requires compliance with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations, ensuring a high degree of financial transparency for investors.

As of November 2025, the company's market capitalization stands at approximately $818 million. The company's recent strong performance, including a third-quarter 2025 net income of $17.7 million and an adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) of $39.3 million, reflects the strength of its public-facing operations and its substantial dredging backlog of $934.5 million. You're buying into a critical infrastructure player with clear revenue visibility well into 2026. Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD).

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Ownership Breakdown

The company's control is highly concentrated, with a single private equity firm holding the largest block of shares, which is a key factor in understanding the decision-making power at the board level. Here's the quick math on who owns the float and who steers the ship:

The total institutional and affiliate ownership is well over 80%, meaning the stock is defintely controlled by professional money managers and the founding private equity group. This concentration can limit short-term volatility but also means major block sales can impact the share price.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Leadership

The executive team is a mix of long-tenured dredging and maritime experts, which is exactly what you want in a capital-intensive, specialized industry like this. The average tenure of the management team is 4.1 years, providing a solid base of experienced leadership.

• Lasse Petterson: Chief Executive Officer, President & Director. He has been at the helm for over 8.5 years and is the primary strategic driver, focusing on fleet modernization and expansion into offshore energy.
• Scott Kornblau: Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer (CFO). He manages the company's financial strategy, which recently included amending the revolving credit facility to $430 million and extending its maturity to 2030.
• David Johanson: Senior Vice President of Project Acquisition & Operations. Oversees the core dredging business and project execution.
• Eleni Beyko, Ph.D.: Senior Vice President of Offshore Energy. She leads the strategic push into the high-growth offshore wind market, a key diversification effort.

This leadership structure shows a clear focus: experienced operational execution (Johanson) coupled with a strong push into new, higher-margin markets (Beyko), all overseen by a veteran CEO (Petterson). Finance: track the utilization rate of the new vessel Acadia once it commences operations in early 2026, as that's a direct indicator of the new strategy's success.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Mission and Values

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's (GLDD) purpose extends beyond its strong $1 billion dredging backlog, focusing instead on being the premier provider of essential marine infrastructure while upholding a commitment to safety and environmental sustainability. This cultural DNA guides their work, from maintaining shipping channels to restoring vital coastlines.

Honestly, you can't look at GLDD's business without seeing their core values in action, like achieving zero recordable injuries in the first quarter of 2025, which shows their safety culture is defintely working. Here's the quick math on what they stand for.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Core Purpose

Official Mission Statement

The formal mission statement for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation is clear and client-focused: to be the leading provider of dredging services, delivering innovative solutions and superior value to its clients. This isn't just about moving sand; it's about solving complex engineering challenges for clients like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

This mission drives their strategic decisions, like the expansion into the offshore energy sector, ensuring they remain the market leader by adapting their fleet and expertise to new, high-value opportunities.

• Be the leading provider of dredging services.
• Deliver innovative solutions and superior value.
• Focus on comprehensive services for a diverse client base.

Vision Statement

While GLDD may not publish a single, one-line vision, their strategic goals paint a picture of their future aspirations. The vision is to solidify their dominance in the U.S. market and drive the technological evolution of the dredging industry, especially in critical infrastructure and new energy markets.

Their vision is also tied to financial strength, with the expectation that full-year 2025 results will exceed 2024, which had revenue of $762.7 million. They are planning for a normalized bid market of approximately $2 billion in 2025, heavily focused on coastal protection projects.

• Achieve U.S. market leadership in dredging services.
• Drive innovation and technological advancement.
• Expand capabilities into strategic areas, like offshore wind.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation Slogan/Tagline

The company uses a simple, action-oriented phrase that cuts straight to the heart of what they do and how essential it is to global commerce and coastal resilience.

• IT ALL STARTS WITH DREDGING.™

This tagline highlights their foundational role in the maritime economy, where port deepening and channel maintenance-the core of dredging-are the first steps for global trade and coastal defense. For a deeper dive into who is betting on this vision, you should read Exploring Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) How It Works

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) operates as the largest provider of dredging services in the United States, primarily generating revenue by executing complex maritime infrastructure projects for government and private clients.

The company creates value by deploying its extensive, specialized fleet-approximately 200 vessels-to deepen ports, restore coastlines, and build subsea foundations, ensuring navigable waterways and protecting critical infrastructure.

Given Company's Product/Service Portfolio

Given Company's Operational Framework

GLDD's operational framework centers on high equipment utilization and superior project execution across its diversified fleet, which is key to maintaining strong margins.

Here's the quick math: the company reported third quarter 2025 revenue of $195.2 million and a gross profit of $43.8 million, yielding a gross margin of 22.4%, driven by this focus on efficiency and higher-margin work.

• Fleet Modernization: Invests heavily in new vessels, like the hopper dredge Amelia Island, which was delivered in August 2025 and immediately entered service, enhancing capacity for large-scale capital projects.
• Backlog-Driven Visibility: Operates with a substantial backlog, which stood at $934.5 million as of September 30, 2025, providing clear revenue visibility well into 2026.
• Project Focus: Prioritizes capital (port deepening) and coastal protection (beach renourishment) projects, which accounted for over 84% of the dredging backlog, as these typically yield higher margins.
• New Market Entry: Launched the Acadia, the first U.S.-flagged, Jones Act-compliant subsea rock installation vessel, to capture the growing domestic offshore wind and energy market, with commercial operations expected to start in Q1 2026.

The company defintely leverages its scale to bid on and execute multiple complex projects simultaneously, from the Brownsville Ship Channel Project to rock placement operations for Equinor's South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.

Given Company's Strategic Advantages

GLDD's market success is grounded in its scale, specialized fleet, and regulatory positioning within the U.S. market.

• Largest U.S. Dredging Provider: As the largest domestic operator, it possesses the scale and range of specialized equipment-including cutter suction and hopper dredges-necessary for the largest federal and private projects.
• Jones Act Compliance: The company's fleet, including new builds like the Amelia Island and the Acadia, is compliant with the Jones Act, which restricts waterborne transport between U.S. ports to U.S.-built, U.S.-owned, and U.S.-crewed vessels, creating a significant barrier to entry for international competitors.
• Diversification into Offshore Energy: The strategic move into offshore energy services, with an offshore energy backlog of $73.0 million as of September 30, 2025, positions the company to capitalize on the massive U.S. offshore wind build-out.
• Strong Government Ties: Benefits from a long-standing relationship with the USACE, which is expected to have a robust 2025 budget, ensuring a consistent pipeline of federally funded maintenance and capital projects.

To be fair, the company's long-term strategy is clearly detailed in its Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD).

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) How It Makes Money

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation primarily makes money by executing large, complex marine infrastructure projects-dredging and deepening waterways-for government agencies, most notably the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and increasingly for private energy clients.

The core of their financial engine is project-based revenue, where they bid on fixed-price or unit-price contracts to move massive volumes of sediment for port expansion, coastal restoration, and beach nourishment, utilizing their specialized, Jones Act-compliant fleet.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Revenue Breakdown

In the third quarter of 2025 (Q3 2025), Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation reported total revenue of $195.2 million. The revenue mix is heavily concentrated in high-margin, multi-year Capital projects, a trend management has deliberately pursued.

Here's the quick math on the dominant segment: Capital and Coastal Protection projects accounted for over 85% of the Q3 2025 revenue. This segment is increasing, driving the overall revenue for the quarter up by $4.0 million year-over-year. The remaining portion, which includes essential but lower-margin Maintenance Dredging, has seen its revenue contract by 42% year-to-date, but this is offset by the emerging Offshore Energy segment.

Business Economics

The economics of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation are fundamentally tied to government spending and major private infrastructure development, shielded somewhat by regulatory barriers.

• Pricing Power & Margin: The company sees higher margins from Capital projects-like port deepening for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals-compared to routine Maintenance Dredging. For example, their Q3 2025 gross profit margin expanded to 22.4%, up from 19.0% in Q3 2024, largely due to this favorable shift toward Capital work.
• Government Dependency: A significant portion of the business relies on funding from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) for navigation and coastal work. While this creates a stable, recurring bid market, it also introduces risk from government shutdowns, though their current backlog is fully funded.
• Growth Drivers: Near-term growth is fueled by massive LNG projects, including the Port Arthur LNG Phase 1 Project and the Brownsville Ship Channel Project. The longer-term pivot is the Offshore Energy segment, where the new, specialized subsea rock installation vessel Acadia has already secured full contract utilization for 2026, well ahead of its Q1 2026 delivery. That's a defintely strong sign for a new business line.
• Competitive Moat (Jones Act): The company benefits from the Jones Act, which requires vessels transporting cargo between U.S. ports to be U.S.-built, owned, and crewed. This severely limits foreign competition in their primary domestic dredging market, protecting their margins and market share.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's Financial Performance

The company's financial health as of November 2025 is robust, driven by operational efficiency and a high-quality project backlog. Management expects 2025 to be the highest EBITDA year in company history by a large margin.

• Adjusted EBITDA: Q3 2025 Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) was $39.3 million, a 46% year-over-year increase. This metric shows strong operational leverage.
• Backlog Visibility: The total dredging backlog stood at a substantial $934.5 million as of September 30, 2025. This provides clear revenue visibility well into 2026. An additional $73.0 million in backlog is held in the emerging Offshore Energy segment.
• Balance Sheet Strength: The company took proactive steps to de-risk its capital structure in October 2025, upsizing its revolving credit facility to $430 million and paying off a $100 million second lien term loan. This move reduces annual interest expense by approximately $6 million.
• Leverage: The Net Leverage Ratio is manageable at 2.5x trailing 12-month Adjusted EBITDA. Keeping this ratio in check is crucial for a capital-intensive business.

If you want a deeper dive on the long-term sustainability of these numbers, check out Breaking Down Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

The concrete next step for any investor here is to track the replenishment of the core dredging backlog, which fell 22% since year-end 2024, to gauge the risk of a revenue shortfall in 2027.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Market Position & Future Outlook

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) is positioned for a record-breaking 2025, driven by a high-margin backlog and a strategic pivot into the offshore energy market. The company's focus on capital and coastal protection projects, which account for over 84% of its backlog, provides strong revenue visibility well into 2026.

Competitive Landscape

In the highly specialized and federally regulated U.S. dredging market, GLDD maintains its leadership position, competing primarily on the scale and modernity of its fleet. The market is concentrated, with GLDD and a few other major players capturing the majority of the work from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and private LNG developers.

Opportunities & Challenges

The near-term outlook is fundamentally strong because of federal funding tailwinds, but you still need to watch for operational bottlenecks. The shift toward higher-margin work in energy and coastal resilience is defintely a long-term positive.

Industry Position

GLDD holds a dominant position in the U.S. dredging market, which is protected by the Jones Act (a federal law requiring goods shipped between U.S. ports to be transported on U.S.-built, U.S.-owned, and U.S.-crewed vessels). This regulation effectively limits foreign competition in the domestic market, solidifying GLDD's competitive moat.

The company is transitioning from a capital expenditure (CapEx) heavy cycle to a cash-generative one, supported by new, high-specification vessels like the Amelia Island hopper dredge delivered in Q3 2025. This fleet modernization allows them to bid on the highest-value, most complex projects. Here's the quick math on their recent performance: TTM Revenue as of Q3 2025 stood at $835 million, with TTM Net Income at $80.55 million.

• Backlog remains robust at $934.5 million, providing visibility into 2026.
• Capital and coastal projects are fueling margin expansion, with Q1 2025 Adjusted EBITDA margin reaching 24.7%.
• The company's liquidity was enhanced in 2025 by increasing its revolving credit facility to $430 million.

To understand the institutional confidence behind these numbers, you should read Exploring Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?