DroneShield’s New Chairman Takes the Helm as Record Sales Mask a Steep Share Decline

DroneShield posts record Q1 revenue of A$74M, appoints Hamish McLennan as chairman-elect, and targets A$2.4B production capacity by 2026 despite stock volatility.

DroneShield is entering a pivotal chapter. The counter-drone specialist has just posted a blockbuster quarter, its coffers are overflowing with cash, and a fresh leadership team is now in place. Yet the stock remains under pressure, trading well below last year’s peak as investors digest the fallout from insider selling and a boardroom overhaul.

Hamish McLennan officially joins the board today as an independent non-executive director and chairman-elect, with the formal handover of the chairmanship set for the annual general meeting on 29 May in Sydney. The move is the culmination of a leadership reset that began in April, when Angus Bean — DroneShield’s sixth employee and former chief technology officer — stepped into the chief executive role. Bean had most recently served as chief product officer.

McLennan arrives with a formidable track record. At REA Group, he helped multiply the company’s market capitalisation tenfold to 20 billion Australian dollars. To align his interests with shareholders, he receives a share package worth A$200,000, which he cannot sell for at least a year. Separately, the company today listed 150,000 newly issued shares on the ASX.

The leadership shake-up was triggered by events last November, when former CEO Oleg Vornik, chairman Peter James and director Jethro Marks collectively sold DroneShield shares worth nearly A$70 million. The stock cratered in response and has never recovered its all-time high of A$6.71, reached in October 2025. Following an independent review, DroneShield introduced a minimum shareholding requirement for all directors and senior executives. James, who had chaired the company for a decade — since before its 2016 IPO — will not stand for re-election at the AGM.

Operationally, the new guard inherits a business firing on all cylinders. First-quarter revenue surged 121 percent to approximately A$74 million, more than double the prior-year period. Operating cash flow turned positive for the fourth consecutive quarter, and cash reserves now sit comfortably above A$200 million. The company plans to plough around A$70 million into research and development, all funded internally with no need for external financing.

Expansion is accelerating in Europe. In late March, DroneShield opened a new European headquarters in Amsterdam and began local manufacturing there. The goal is to ramp up production capacity to A$2.4 billion by the end of 2026. The pipeline supports that ambition: the company is currently negotiating projects worth more than A$2 billion.

Despite the strong fundamentals, the share price has been volatile. After the leadership changes were announced, the stock at one point tumbled 20 percent. It now trades at A$3.72. Analysts remain bullish, however. Bell Potter maintains a “buy” rating with a price target of A$4.80.

All eyes now turn to the AGM on 29 May at 10:00 AEST, which will also be accessible via webcast. There, McLennan will make his first official appearance as chairman, and the new leadership duo will face shareholders directly. The key question: how they intend to convert that A$2.2 billion pipeline into signed contracts.