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Tronox Q1 Earnings Miss Estimates, Sales Rise Y/Y On Higher Volumes

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Key Takeaways

  • Tronox posted a wider Q1 adjusted loss as EBITDA fell 45% on pricing and cost pressures.
  • TROX revenue rose 3% as higher TiO2 and zircon volumes offset weaker product mix impacts.
  • Tronox expects stronger Q2 pricing, higher TiO2 volumes and positive free cash flow.

Tronox Holdings Plc (TROX - Free Report) logged a loss (as reported) of 65 cents per share for the first quarter of 2026, wider than a loss of 70 cents reported a year ago.
 
Barring one-time items, adjusted loss for the reported quarter was 55 cents per share compared with a loss of 15 cents a year ago. It was wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 48 cents.
 
The company raked in revenues of $760 million, up around 3% year over year. It beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $758.5 million. Higher TiO2 and zircon sales volumes and favorable currency impact more than offset lower average selling price and product mix impact. 
 
Adjusted EBITDA was $62 million, down 45% year over year, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 8.2%. The downside was due to lower average selling prices, including mix, unfavorable exchange rate movements and higher freight and production costs. 

Tronox Holdings PLC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

TROX’s Q1 Segment Highlights

TiO2 sales were $616 million in the reported quarter, up 5% year over year. TiO2 volumes rose 5% year over year, while price/mix was down 4%. Currency was 4% favorable.

 Zircon sales were $89 million, up 29% year over year. Sales were supported by 57% volumes growth, offset by 28% price/mix decline. 

TROX’s Financials

Cash and equivalents were $126 million as of March 31, 2026. Total debt was $3.3 billion at the end of the year, while net debt was $3.2 billion. 
 
Operating cash used was $68 million for the first quarter, while free cash flow was negative $135 million. 

TROX’s Outlook

Management expects a stronger second quarter with improving demand pricing and cash generation. The company expects free cash flow to turn positive in quarter two and largely offset the cash use in the first quarter while also targeting meaningful positive free cash flow for full-year 2026.  

TiO2 volumes are projected to rise sequentially in the high-single-digit percentage range while zircon volumes are expected to moderate slightly from first-quarter levels. Both TiO2 and zircon pricing are expected to improve in the mid-single-digit percentage range due to announced price increases and cost-related surcharges. Supported by stronger pricing and higher TiO2 volumes, Tronox expects adjusted EBITDA of $65 million to $85 million for the second quarter of 2026. 

TROX Stock’s Price Performance

Shares of Tronox have risen 57.4% in the past year compared with the industry’s 18.6% growth.

Zacks Investment ResearchImage Source: Zacks Investment Research

TROX’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

TROX currently sports a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks worth a look in the basic materials space are Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM - Free Report) , Idaho Strategic Resources, Inc. (IDR - Free Report) and NioCorp Developments Ltd. (NB - Free Report) .

Sociedad is slated to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 26. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for loss is pegged at $1.78 per share, indicating 270.8% year-over-year growth. SQM has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.

Idaho is expected to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 14. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 43 cents per share, indicating 258.3% year-over-year growth. IDR sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

NioCorp is expected to report fiscal third-quarter results on May 14. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NB’s third-quarter loss is pegged at 2 cents per share. NB currently has a Zacks Rank #2.

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