We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
IFF reported Q1 EPS of $1.25, beating estimates, with sales topping consensus despite a 3.6% YoY decline.
IFF saw margin expansion and 11.6% EBITDA growth driven by productivity gains and broad volume increases.
IFF reaffirmed 2026 guidance and is advancing Food Ingredients divestiture to unlock shareholder value.
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF - Free Report) reported adjusted earnings of $1.25 per share in first-quarter 2026, up 4.2% year over year. The result beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.08 by 15.7%.
Including one-time items, the company reported earnings of 66 cents per share against the prior-year quarter’s loss of $3.98.
International Flavors’ quarterly net sales were $2.741 billion, down 3.6% from the year-ago period but 3.4% above the $2.65 billion consensus mark. On a comparable currency-neutral basis, sales increased 3%, supported by volume gains across all four segments.
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Below the top line, IFF’s quarter reflected better operating execution despite the headline sales decline. In the reported quarter, IFF’s cost of goods sold was down 5% year over year to $1.7 billion. Gross profit dipped 1.6% to around $1 billion. The gross margin came in at 37.1% compared with 36.4% in the year-ago quarter.
Research and development expenses decreased 7.4% year over year to $427 million. Selling and administrative expenses inched up 1.2% to $166 million in the quarter. Adjusted operating EBITDA came in at $568 million, up 11.6% from the prior-year quarter’s $509 million. The adjusted operating EBITDA margin was 20.7% compared with the year-ago quarter’s 17.9%.
On a comparable currency-neutral basis, adjusted operating EBITDA improved 8% compared with the prior year, aided by volume growth and productivity gains.
International Flavors' Segments Show Broad Volume Growth
Net sales in the Taste segment increased 5.6% year over year to $656 million in quarter. The figure surpassed our estimate of $649 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales rose 2% with broad-based growth in all regions. The segment’s adjusted operating EBITDA was $153 million, down 29% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $139 million.
Net sales in the Food Ingredients segment rose 7.7% year over year to $839 million in the March-ended quarter. The figure beat our estimate of $797 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales rose 3% attributed to volume growth in nearly all businesses. The adjusted operating EBITDA was $114 million, up 5.6% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $118 million.
Sales generated in the Health & Bioscience segment were $595 million compared with the year-earlier quarter’s $540 million. Our estimate was $558 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales were up 5% with growth in nearly all businesses, led by Animal Nutrition and Food Biosciences. The adjusted operating EBITDA was $153 million in the quarter, up 13.3% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $169 million.
The Scent segment’s sales were $651 million, up 6% year over year. Our projection was $637 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales inched up 1% as growth in Consumer Fragrances and Fine Fragrances was partially offset by a decline in Fragrance Ingredients. The adjusted operating EBITDA increased 5% year over year to $148 million. Our model had projected EBITDA of $158 million.
International Flavors' Cash Flow Rose, Leverage Steady
Cash generation improved meaningfully with International Flavors generating $257 million in cash from operating activities in the first quarter, higher than $1.27 million in the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow was at $92 million after $165 million of capital expenditures.
IFF had cash and cash equivalents of $562 million at the end of the first quarter of 2026, down from $590 million at the end of 2025. Long-term debt was $4.74 billion at the quarter-end compared with $4.74 billion at the end of 2025. Net debt to credit adjusted EBITDA was 2.5x.
International Flavors Maintains 2026 Guidance
Looking ahead, IFF reaffirmed its full-year 2026 guidance despite what management described as an unsettled operating environment. The company expects sales for fiscal 2026 between $10.5 billion and $10.8 billion. Adjusted EBITDA is expected between $2.05 billion and $2.15 billion.
International Flavors continues to expect comparable currency neutral sales growth to be between 1% to 4%, and comparable currency neutral adjusted operating EBITDA growth to be 3-8%.
IFF's Food Ingredients Review and Portfolio Actions
Portfolio actions remained a key part of the quarter’s narrative. IFF said it is progressing a disciplined sale process for its Food Ingredients business as it works to maximize value for shareholders. The company also updated the timing assumptions embedded in its full-year view following the divestiture of its Soy Crush, Concentrates and Lecithin business, which closed on March 2, 2026.
IFF Stock’s Price Performance
In the past year, the company’s shares have lost 6% against the industry’s growth of 4.6%.
Performance of Other Chemical - Specialty Stocks in Q1
Linde plc (LIN - Free Report) reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $4.33, up 10% from $3.95 a year ago. The figure topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.27 by 1.41%.
Total quarterly revenues of $8.78 billion rose 8% from $8.11 billion recorded in the year-ago period. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $8.51 billion by 3.17%. The strong quarterly results can be attributed to higher pricing and incremental project start-ups, which supported underlying growth.
PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG - Free Report) delivered adjusted earnings of $1.83 per share in the first quarter of 2026, up 6.4% year over year and in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Revenues came in at $3.93 billion, up 6.7% from the year-ago quarter and ahead of the consensus mark of $3.84 billion by 2.4%. Results benefited from higher selling prices and a sizable foreign currency translation lift, while organic sales increased 1% year over year.
The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW - Free Report) reported first-quarter 2026 earnings of $2.15 per share, up 7.5% from the year-ago quarter figure of $2. Barring one-time items, earnings were $2.35 per share. The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.24, delivering an earnings surprise of 4.9%.
Revenues were $5.67 billion, up 6.8% year over year and ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.57 billion. Net income rose 6.1% to $534.7 million, representing 9.4% of net sales, as management pointed to growth initiatives and share gains despite soft demand conditions. Sherwin-Williams attributed the improvement primarily to higher sales and moderating raw material costs, partially offset by the dilutive impact of the Suvinil acquisition.
Zacks' 7 Best Strong Buy Stocks (New Research Report)
Valued at $99, click below to receive our just-released report
predicting the 7 stocks that will soar highest in the coming month.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Zacks
IFF Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates on Volume Growth & Productivity Gains
Key Takeaways
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF - Free Report) reported adjusted earnings of $1.25 per share in first-quarter 2026, up 4.2% year over year. The result beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.08 by 15.7%.
Including one-time items, the company reported earnings of 66 cents per share against the prior-year quarter’s loss of $3.98.
International Flavors’ quarterly net sales were $2.741 billion, down 3.6% from the year-ago period but 3.4% above the $2.65 billion consensus mark. On a comparable currency-neutral basis, sales increased 3%, supported by volume gains across all four segments.
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. Quote
IFF's Q1 Margins Improved on Productivity Gains
Below the top line, IFF’s quarter reflected better operating execution despite the headline sales decline. In the reported quarter, IFF’s cost of goods sold was down 5% year over year to $1.7 billion. Gross profit dipped 1.6% to around $1 billion. The gross margin came in at 37.1% compared with 36.4% in the year-ago quarter.
Research and development expenses decreased 7.4% year over year to $427 million. Selling and administrative expenses inched up 1.2% to $166 million in the quarter. Adjusted operating EBITDA came in at $568 million, up 11.6% from the prior-year quarter’s $509 million. The adjusted operating EBITDA margin was 20.7% compared with the year-ago quarter’s 17.9%.
On a comparable currency-neutral basis, adjusted operating EBITDA improved 8% compared with the prior year, aided by volume growth and productivity gains.
International Flavors' Segments Show Broad Volume Growth
Net sales in the Taste segment increased 5.6% year over year to $656 million in quarter. The figure surpassed our estimate of $649 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales rose 2% with broad-based growth in all regions. The segment’s adjusted operating EBITDA was $153 million, down 29% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $139 million.
Net sales in the Food Ingredients segment rose 7.7% year over year to $839 million in the March-ended quarter. The figure beat our estimate of $797 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales rose 3% attributed to volume growth in nearly all businesses. The adjusted operating EBITDA was $114 million, up 5.6% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $118 million.
Sales generated in the Health & Bioscience segment were $595 million compared with the year-earlier quarter’s $540 million. Our estimate was $558 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales were up 5% with growth in nearly all businesses, led by Animal Nutrition and Food Biosciences. The adjusted operating EBITDA was $153 million in the quarter, up 13.3% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s adjusted EBITDA was $169 million.
The Scent segment’s sales were $651 million, up 6% year over year. Our projection was $637 million. On a comparable basis, currency neutral sales inched up 1% as growth in Consumer Fragrances and Fine Fragrances was partially offset by a decline in Fragrance Ingredients. The adjusted operating EBITDA increased 5% year over year to $148 million. Our model had projected EBITDA of $158 million.
International Flavors' Cash Flow Rose, Leverage Steady
Cash generation improved meaningfully with International Flavors generating $257 million in cash from operating activities in the first quarter, higher than $1.27 million in the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow was at $92 million after $165 million of capital expenditures.
IFF had cash and cash equivalents of $562 million at the end of the first quarter of 2026, down from $590 million at the end of 2025. Long-term debt was $4.74 billion at the quarter-end compared with $4.74 billion at the end of 2025. Net debt to credit adjusted EBITDA was 2.5x.
International Flavors Maintains 2026 Guidance
Looking ahead, IFF reaffirmed its full-year 2026 guidance despite what management described as an unsettled operating environment. The company expects sales for fiscal 2026 between $10.5 billion and $10.8 billion. Adjusted EBITDA is expected between $2.05 billion and $2.15 billion.
International Flavors continues to expect comparable currency neutral sales growth to be between 1% to 4%, and comparable currency neutral adjusted operating EBITDA growth to be 3-8%.
IFF's Food Ingredients Review and Portfolio Actions
Portfolio actions remained a key part of the quarter’s narrative. IFF said it is progressing a disciplined sale process for its Food Ingredients business as it works to maximize value for shareholders. The company also updated the timing assumptions embedded in its full-year view following the divestiture of its Soy Crush, Concentrates and Lecithin business, which closed on March 2, 2026.
IFF Stock’s Price Performance
In the past year, the company’s shares have lost 6% against the industry’s growth of 4.6%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
International Flavors’ Zacks Rank
IFF currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performance of Other Chemical - Specialty Stocks in Q1
Linde plc (LIN - Free Report) reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $4.33, up 10% from $3.95 a year ago. The figure topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.27 by 1.41%.
Total quarterly revenues of $8.78 billion rose 8% from $8.11 billion recorded in the year-ago period. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $8.51 billion by 3.17%. The strong quarterly results can be attributed to higher pricing and incremental project start-ups, which supported underlying growth.
PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG - Free Report) delivered adjusted earnings of $1.83 per share in the first quarter of 2026, up 6.4% year over year and in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Revenues came in at $3.93 billion, up 6.7% from the year-ago quarter and ahead of the consensus mark of $3.84 billion by 2.4%. Results benefited from higher selling prices and a sizable foreign currency translation lift, while organic sales increased 1% year over year.
The Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW - Free Report) reported first-quarter 2026 earnings of $2.15 per share, up 7.5% from the year-ago quarter figure of $2.
Barring one-time items, earnings were $2.35 per share. The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.24, delivering an earnings surprise of 4.9%.
Revenues were $5.67 billion, up 6.8% year over year and ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.57 billion. Net income rose 6.1% to $534.7 million, representing 9.4% of net sales, as management pointed to growth initiatives and share gains despite soft demand conditions. Sherwin-Williams attributed the improvement primarily to higher sales and moderating raw material costs, partially offset by the dilutive impact of the Suvinil acquisition.