H.B. Fuller Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2022 Results

Net Revenue Growth of 13.8%; Organic Growth of 18.4% Year-on-Year

Reported EPS (diluted) of $0.84; Adjusted EPS (diluted) of $1.06, Up 34% Year-on-Year

Adjusted EBITDA of $138 million, up 24% y-on-y; Adjusted EBITDA Margin Increased 120 basis points y-on-y

Company Increasing FY2022 Adjusted EBITDA Expectations to a range of $540 to $550 million; 16% - 18% Growth

H.B. Fuller Company (NYSE: FUL) today reported financial results for its third quarter that ended August 27, 2022.

Third Quarter 2022 Noteworthy Items:

• Net revenue grew 13.8% year-on-year, with organic revenue increasing 18.4% year-on-year with strong organic growth in all operating segments;
• Gross margin was 26.5%; Adjusted gross margin of 26.5% expanded 280 basis points year-on-year, driven by strong pricing execution to recover raw material cost inflation;
• Net Income was $46.5 million; Adjusted EBITDA of $137.7 million was up 24.4% year-on-year and adjusted EBITDA margin was up 120 basis points;
• Reported EPS (diluted) was $0.84; Adjusted EPS (diluted) was $1.06, increasing 34.2% versus the prior year.

Summary of Third Quarter 2022 Results:

Net revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $941.2 million, up 13.8% versus the third quarter of fiscal 2021. Robust pricing actions to recover unprecedented raw material cost inflation increased net revenue by 18.7 percentage points. As expected, volume was down 0.3% as a result of slowing economic conditions, offset by market share gains. As a result, organic revenue increased 18.4% versus the third quarter of fiscal 2021. Unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates reduced net revenue growth by 6.6 percentage points, while acquisitions increased net revenue growth by 2.0 percentage points. On a year-on-year basis, Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives organic revenue increased 22.9%, Engineering Adhesives organic revenue increased 17.5%, and Construction Adhesives organic revenue increased 6.9%.

Gross profit in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $249.2 million. Adjusted gross profit in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $249.8 million. Adjusted gross profit margin of 26.5% increased 280 basis points year-on-year. Strong pricing actions to recover raw material cost inflation, as well as operating efficiencies, drove adjusted gross margin higher year-on-year.

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expense was $161.2 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 and adjusted SG&A was $156.2 million. Adjusted SG&A as a percent of net revenue increased 100 basis points versus the third quarter of last year. The increase in SG&A, as a percentage of net revenue, was largely driven by higher variable compensation and higher travel related expenses following the pandemic driven slowdown in travel.

Net income attributable to H.B. Fuller for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $46.5 million, or $0.84 per diluted share. Adjusted net income attributable to H.B. Fuller for the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $58.3 million, up 35.9% year-on-year. Adjusted EPS was $1.06 per diluted share, up $0.27 or 34.2% year-on-year, reflecting strong organic revenue growth and operating efficiencies which more than offset the unfavorable impact of currency and higher interest rates.

Adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 was $137.7 million, up 24.4% compared with the third quarter of last year. Adjusted EBITDA margin increased 120 basis points year-on-year from 13.4% to 14.6%. Strong pricing actions, continued strategic mix shift towards more highly-specified products, and operational discipline drove the improvement year-on-year.

“Our strong organic growth and improved profitability in the third quarter serve as additional proof points that our strategy is working, particularly in light of continued raw material inflation and currency headwinds from the strong dollar,” said Jim Owens, H.B. Fuller president and chief executive officer. “Our innovation driven market share gains and mix shift to a more highly specified product portfolio through innovation and strategic M&A, coupled with our responsible pricing actions, are delivering significant improvement to our financial results.

“Our underlying market share gains are enabling us to drive a more favorable volume performance in the marketplace and position us well as the rate of raw material inflation subsides. These share gains will endure and should grow as we execute our strategy. At the same time, our ability to substitute adhesive technologies greatly improves with supply chain normalization and allows us to provide competitive offerings while improving margins. These substitution capabilities, combined with the pricing actions we have taken throughout this unprecedented inflationary environment, will enable us to grow organic revenues and expand margins in recessionary economic environments.

“We have very effectively managed both economic and currency headwinds and we remain on track to achieve significant double-digit EPS growth and EBITDA growth at the top end of the range we provided in the first quarter. We are performing exceptionally well, and we are uniquely positioned to continue to deliver above-market organic growth while expanding our margins,” concluded Owens.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Items:

At the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2022 net debt was $1,857 million, down $10 million sequentially versus the second quarter. Cash flow from operations in the quarter was $58 million, up $49 million sequentially reflecting strong revenue growth and improving margins but down versus last year due to higher year-on-year working capital requirements.

Fiscal 2022 Outlook:

• Company is increasing full-year expectations for adjusted EBITDA, despite slower economic conditions, stronger U.S. Dollar, and continued raw material cost inflation;
• Organic revenue growth for fiscal year 2022 is expected to be in the range of 17% to 18%, excluding the impact of the extra week;
• Adjusted EBITDA for fiscal 2022 is expected to be in the range of $540 to $550 million, up from the previously provided range of $530 to $550 million and equating to growth of 16% to 18% versus fiscal year 2021;
• Net interest expense for fiscal 2022 is expected to be between $80 and $85 million reflecting higher interest rates and the expectation of some opportunistic refinancing before the end of the year;
• Adjusted EPS in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 is expected to be in the range of $1.15 to $1.30, resulting in fiscal year 2022 adjusted EPS increasing 19% to 23% year-on-year, despite the significantly stronger U.S. dollar and higher borrowing costs;

• Working capital, as a percentage of annualized net revenue, is expected to be in the range of 16% to 17% by fiscal year-end, resulting in full-year cash flow from operations similar to the prior year.

Conference Call:

The company will hold a conference call on September 22, 2022, at 9:30 a.m. CT (10:30 a.m. ET) to discuss its results. Interested parties may listen to the conference call on a live webcast. The webcast, along with a supplemental presentation, may be accessed from the company’s website at https://investors.hbfuller.com. Participants must register prior to accessing the webcast using this link and should do so at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the call to install and test any necessary software and audio connections. A telephone replay of the conference call will be available from 12:30 p.m. CT on September 22, 2022, through 10:59 p.m. CT on September 29, 2022. To access the telephone replay dial 1-800-770-2030 (toll free) or 1-647-362-9199, and enter Conference ID: 6370505.

Regulation G

The information presented in this earnings release regarding consolidated and segment organic revenue growth, operating income, adjusted gross profit, adjusted gross profit margin, adjusted selling, general and administrative expense, adjusted income before income taxes and income from equity investments, adjusted income taxes, adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted net income, adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) does not conform to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) and should not be construed as an alternative to the reported results determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Management has included this non-GAAP information to assist in understanding the operating performance of the company and its operating segments as well as the comparability of results to the results of other companies. The non-GAAP information provided may not be consistent with the methodologies used by other companies. All non-GAAP information is reconciled with reported U.S. GAAP results in the “Regulation G Reconciliation” tables in this press release with the exception of our forward-looking non-GAAP measures contained above in our Fiscal 2022 Guidance, which the company cannot reconcile to forward-looking GAAP results without unreasonable effort.

About H.B. Fuller

Since 1887, H.B. Fuller has been a leading global adhesives provider focusing on perfecting adhesives, sealants and other specialty chemical products to improve products and lives. With fiscal 2021 net revenue of $3.3 billion, H.B. Fuller’s commitment to innovation and sustainable adhesive solutions brings together people, products and processes that answer and solve some of the world's biggest challenges. Our reliable, responsive service creates lasting, rewarding connections with customers in electronics, disposable hygiene, medical, transportation, aerospace, clean energy, packaging, construction, woodworking, general industries and other consumer businesses. And, our promise to our people connects them with opportunities to innovate and thrive. For more information, visit us at https://www.hbfuller.com.

Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements often address expected future business and financial performance, financial condition, and other matters, and often contain words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “opportunity,” “outlook,” “plan,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “strategy,” "target," “will,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” “would” and similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words or phrases. These statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, including but not limited to the following: the consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak and other pandemics on our operations and financial results; the impact on the supply chain, raw material costs and pricing of our products due to the Russia-Ukraine war; the impact on our margins and product demand due to inflationary pressures; the substantial amount of debt we have incurred to finance our acquisition of Royal, our ability to repay or refinance our debt or to incur additional debt in the future, our need for a significant amount of cash to service and repay the debt and to pay dividends on our common stock, the effect of debt covenants that limit the discretion of management in operating the business or in paying dividends; our ability to pay dividends and to pursue growth opportunities if we continue to pay dividends according to the current dividend policy; our ability to achieve expected synergies, cost savings and operating efficiencies from our restructuring initiatives and operational improvement projects within the expected time frames or at all; our ability to effectively implement Project ONE; uncertain political and economic conditions; fluctuations in product demand; competing products and pricing; our geographic and product mix; availability and price of raw materials; disruptions to our relationships with our major customers and suppliers; failures in our information technology systems; regulatory compliance across our global footprint; trade policies and economic sanctions impacting our markets; changes in tax laws and tariffs; devaluations and other foreign exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of litigation and investigations, including for product liability and environmental matters; impairment charges on our goodwill or long-lived assets; the effect of new accounting pronouncements and accounting charges and credits; and similar matters. Many of the foregoing risks and uncertainties are, and will be, exacerbated by COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war and the resulting deterioration of the global business and economic environment.

Additional information about these various risks and uncertainties can be found in the “Risk Factors” section of our Form 10-K filings, and any updates to the risk factors in our Form 10-Q and 8-K filings with the SEC, but there may be other risks and uncertainties that we are unable to identify at this time or that we do not currently expect to have a material impact on the business. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. We do not undertake to update or revise any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.