Avantor, Inc.

Avantor reported Q2 revenue of $1.69 billion, down 0.4% organically and up 0.5% reported. Adjusted EBITDA was $254 million with a 15% margin, and adjusted EPS was $0.21. Free cash flow was $143 million, or $152 million excluding cash restructuring costs, and the company repaid about $112 million of debt; adjusted net leverage ended at 3.3x. VWR revenue was $1.24 billion, up 1.7% organically, with a 10.2% adjusted operating margin; BMP revenue was $452 million, down 5.6% organically, with a 26% adjusted operating margin. For 2026, Avantor raised organic revenue growth guidance to negative 0.5% to positive 0.5%, kept adjusted EBITDA margin guidance unchanged, raised adjusted EPS guidance to $0.80 to $0.83, and reiterated free cash flow guidance of $500 million to $550 million. For Q3, the company expects adjusted EPS of $0.20 to $0.21 and total company organic revenue growth of about 250 basis points, with FX expected to be a 125 basis point headwind to reported revenue.

Emmanuel Ligner framed the quarter as evidence that Revival is working, saying the program is producing measurable results and putting the company on a path to sustainable growth. He emphasized that VWR’s return to growth was driven largely by deliberate actions, while BMP showed improving order intake and sequential revenue growth that should support a return to organic growth in the second half. His tone was constructive and confident, especially on the outlook for stronger second-half momentum and a growth year in 2027.

Steve Eck highlighted the quarter’s financial strength: $1.69 billion of revenue, $254 million of adjusted EBITDA, 15% margin, $0.21 adjusted EPS, and $152 million of free cash flow excluding restructuring. He said VWR margins improved sequentially by about 100 basis points, while BMP margins were pressured by lower volumes but improved sequentially on better mix and volume. On capital allocation, he cited $112 million of debt repayment in the quarter, $3.4 billion of net debt, and an adjusted net leverage ratio of 3.3x, while reiterating the goal of getting below 3x and finishing the fiscal year at or below that target. He also noted a full-year headcount reduction of approximately 3% and said net interest expense should decline modestly versus 2025.

Analysts focused on how much of VWR’s rebound came from company actions versus market recovery, and management said more than half of Q2 growth came from deliberate actions such as contract wins, e-commerce improvements, and pricing work. On BMP, questions centered on the book-to-bill above 1x, the backlog conversion path, and the size/timing of discrete headwinds; management said Q2 had roughly 600 basis points of headwinds, Q3 should see about 150 basis points, and Q4 will still face a difficult comparison of about 400 basis points from Electronic Materials. Management also said VWR investments are already baked into guidance, gross margin should stay steady through year-end, and the portfolio review within Revival is ongoing with more updates expected at Investor Day.