H.B. Fuller Company

Second-quarter revenue increased 5.8% year over year; currency and acquisitions contributed 3.2%, and organic revenue grew 2.6% with pricing up 3% and volume slightly down. Adjusted gross margin was 34.2%, up 200 basis points year over year; adjusted EBITDA was $181 million, up 9%; adjusted EBITDA margin was 19.1%, up 70 basis points; and adjusted EPS was $1.41, up 19%. Cash flow from operations was $121 million, net working capital was 16.4% of annualized net revenue, and net debt to adjusted EBITDA was 3.1x. For fiscal 2026, net revenue is still expected to be up mid-single digits, organic revenue low single digits, FX to add 1%-2% to revenue, adjusted EBITDA to be $650 million-$675 million, adjusted EPS $4.60-$4.90, and cash flow from operations $300 million-$325 million. Third-quarter net revenue is expected to be up mid-single digits and adjusted EBITDA $180 million-$190 million.

Celeste Mastin said the quarter showed strong execution, with pricing actions taking hold, restructuring savings coming through, and supply continuity holding up well amid petrochemical disruption. She framed AMS as a strategic step that would expand medical into a larger, faster-growing, higher-margin part of the portfolio and said the company would still view itself as a pure-play adhesives business because AMS is heavily adhesive- and tape-based. Her tone was confident and constructive, while also cautioning that supply-chain aftershocks and raw-material inflation are likely to persist.

John Corkrean highlighted the financial bridge: revenue up 5.8%, organic up 2.6%, adjusted gross margin of 34.2%, adjusted EBITDA of $181 million, and adjusted EPS of $1.41. He also noted cash flow from operations of $121 million, record second-quarter operating cash flow, 750,000 shares repurchased, and net debt to adjusted EBITDA of 3.1x versus 3.4x a year ago. On guidance, he raised full-year adjusted EBITDA to $650 million-$675 million, EPS to $4.60-$4.90, and operating cash flow to $300 million-$325 million, while saying Q3 EBITDA should be $180 million-$190 million and that the AMS deal is not included in that outlook.

Analysts focused on the AMS deal, asking about strategic fit, overlap, synergies, leverage, and whether the company would consider divestitures. Management said the deal remains aligned with its plan to grow medical, expects about $55 million of run-rate synergies, and sees no meaningful cannibalization because the businesses are complementary across products, channels, and geographies. Questions on second-half volumes and pricing drew a response that pricing should remain high single digit in the back half, while volume risk is concentrated in HHC and auto-related EA demand, with consumer softness the main concern.