Balchem Corporation 2026 Q2 Earnings Call

Please go ahead. Morning, everyone.

Thank you for joining our conference call this morning to discuss the results of Balchem Corporation for the quarter ending June 30th, 2026. My name's Martin Bengtsson, Chief Financial Officer, and hosting this call with me is Ted Harris, our Chairman, President, and CEO. Following the advice of our counsel, auditors, and the SEC, at this time, I would like to read our forward-looking statement. Statements made in today's calls that are not historical facts are considered forward-looking statements. We can give no assurance that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements will prove correct, and various factors could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations, including risks and factors identified in Balchem's most recent Form 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K reports. The company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Today's call and commentary also include non-GAAP financial measures.

Please refer to the reconciliations in our earnings release for further details. I will now turn the call over to Ted Harris, our Chairman, President, and CEO.

Thanks, Martin. Good morning, and welcome to our conference call. We were extremely pleased with our second quarter performance reported this morning, which was once again driven by healthy, broad-based growth across all three of our reporting segments and continued solid execution on our strategic growth initiatives. Our healthy growth continues to be fueled by the ongoing market penetration of our unique portfolio of specialty nutrients and delivery systems and the favorable better-for-you trends within the food and nutrition markets that are well-aligned with our product offerings and capabilities. As a result, we delivered record quarterly consolidated sales, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted net earnings, as well as solid cash flows.

Before discussing our second quarter financial results in more detail, I'd like to take a moment to comment on the broader operating environment within each of our business segments and highlight a few areas of progress in the quarter, particularly within our capital allocation strategy. Demand trends across our businesses remain healthy. Our unique portfolio, strong market positions, and focus on innovation continue to drive above-market growth. Within Human Nutrition & Health, we delivered another very strong quarter, supported by solid demand across both our nutrients portfolio and our food ingredients and solutions businesses. Heightened interest in supplementation and healthier nutrient-dense, high protein, high fiber, and lower sugar products continues to create opportunities for our customers and subsequently, our science-based ingredients, formulation expertise, and application capabilities.

In Animal Nutrition & Health, we continue to generate healthy growth as a result of both expanding adoption of our precision-release rumen-protected nutrient technologies within the dairy industry, as well as realizing higher year-over-year volumes and margins in our European monogastric business. We remain encouraged by the momentum across our Animal Nutrition & Health portfolio and the value our products provide to producers seeking greater efficiency, productivity, and sustainability. Specialty products also continues to drive healthy top and bottom-line growth on solid volume and pricing growth, particularly within our performance gases business. Demand trends across our businesses remain healthy, and each of our reporting segments is performing well. On a consolidated basis, we delivered strong growth and healthy margins despite higher input costs related to the conflict in the Middle East as a result of both mitigating actions and growth-driven operating leverage.

We remain confident in our ability to drive continued growth and margin performance going forward. On the capital allocation front, consistent with our balanced approach to capital allocation, we took several actions during the quarter to enhance financial flexibility and return capital to shareholders. First, we recently completed the refinancing of our revolving credit facility. The new amended agreement increases our borrowing capacity from $550 million to $650 million and extends the maturity of the facility into 2031. This transaction further strengthens our financial position and provides additional flexibility to support our growth strategy, including continued investment in innovation, capacity expansion, and strategic acquisition opportunities. Second, we repurchased approximately $29 million of Balchem common stock during the second quarter and $114 million over the trailing 12 months, reflecting our continued commitment to disciplined capital allocation and shareholder value creation.

Regarding the second quarter financial performance, this morning, we reported record quarterly consolidated revenue of $284 million, an increase of 11.2% versus the prior year. We delivered record quarterly GAAP earnings from operations of $59 million, an increase of 15.1% versus the prior year. Consolidated net income closed the quarter at a record $45 million, an increase of 16.6%. This quarterly net income translated to diluted net earnings per share of $1.39 on a GAAP basis, up 18.8%. On an adjusted basis, we delivered record quarterly adjusted EBITDA of $78 million, an increase of 12.6%. Our quarterly adjusted net earnings were a record $48 million, an increase of 15.7%, which translated to $1.49 per diluted share, up 17.3%.

Overall, we delivered an outstanding second quarter, highlighted by record financial results, broad-based growth across our businesses, the strengthening of our balance sheet via our newly amended credit facility, and continued execution on our long-term strategic objectives. With that, I'm now going to turn the call back over to Martin to go through the second quarter financial results in more detail and the results for each of our business segments.

Thank you, Ted. The second quarter was another strong quarter. Our record second quarter net sales of $284 million were up 11.2% compared to prior year, driven by strong performances across all three segments: Human Nutrition & Health, Animal Nutrition & Health, and Specialty Products. Our gross margin dollars were $104 million, up 11.4%, and our gross margin percent expanded to 36.5% of sales, up 10 basis points. The gross margin performance was driven primarily by sales growth and manufacturing efficiencies, partially offset by certain higher manufacturing input costs. Consolidated operating expenses for the second quarter were $44 million as compared to $42 million in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to higher compensation-related costs. GAAP earnings from operations for the second quarter were a record $59 million, an increase of 15.1%.

On an adjusted basis, as detailed in our earnings release this morning, record non-GAAP earnings from operations of $64 million were up 13.9%. Adjusted EBITDA was a record $78 million, an increase of 12.6%, with an adjusted EBITDA margin rate of 27.4%. Net interest expense for the second quarter was $2 million, a decrease of $1 million, primarily driven by lower outstanding borrowings and lower interest rates. Our net debt was $89 million, with an overall leverage ratio on a net debt basis of 0.3. The effective tax rates for the second quarters of 2026 and 2025 were 22.8% and 21.9%, respectively. The increase in the effective tax rate from the prior year was primarily due to lower tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Consolidated net income closed the quarter at a record $45 million, up 16.6%.

This quarterly net income translated into diluted net earnings per share of $1.39, an 18.8% increase. On an adjusted basis, our second quarter adjusted net earnings were a record $48 million, an increase of 15.7%, which translated to $1.49 per diluted share. Cash flows from operations were $47 million, with free cash flow of $36 million, and we closed out the quarter with $63 million of cash on the balance sheet. As we look at the second quarter from a segment perspective, our Human Nutrition & Health segment saw record sales of $177 million, up 10%, driven by growth in both our nutrients business and our food ingredients and solutions businesses. Record earnings from operations of $42 million were up 10.5%, driven by the higher sales and favorable mix, partially offset by certain higher manufacturing input costs and higher operating expenses.

Second quarter adjusted earnings from operations for this segment were a record $46 million, up 10.9%. We are excited about the growth outlook for Human Nutrition & Health, where consumer demand for healthier nutritional solutions continues to support growth. Our differentiated ingredients, formulation expertise, and branded portfolio position us well to continue serving our customers and expanding our market opportunities. Our Animal Nutrition and Health segment delivered sales of $64 million, up 15%. The increase was driven by higher sales in both the monogastric and ruminant businesses. Animal Nutrition and Health delivered earnings from operations of $5 million, up 48.7%, driven by the higher sales, partially offset by certain higher manufacturing input costs and higher operating expenses. Second quarter adjusted earnings from operations for this segment were $6 million, up 47.7%. We delivered another quarter of improved year-over-year performance in our Animal Nutrition and Health segment.