JBT Marel Corporation, a leading global technology solutions provider to high-value segments of the food & beverage industry, reported financial results for the first quarter of 2026.
"We started 2026 on a positive note, marking the second consecutive quarter with inbound orders above $1 billion," said Brian Deck, Chief Executive Officer. "Our orders reflected strong demand across our Prepared Food and Beverage Solutions and Protein Solutions segments."
"During the first quarter, we hosted our 2026 Investor Day," continued Deck. "We introduced our NextGen strategy, which further elevates our value proposition by advancing our customer-centric service model, enhancing our full-line product offering with targeted innovation, expanding commercial opportunities through cross-selling, and harnessing our continuous improvement culture to reduce complexity and achieve sustainable margin expansion."
Comparisons in this news release are to the comparable period of the prior year, unless otherwise noted. An earnings presentation with supplemental information is available on the Company's Investor Relations website at https://ir.jbtmarel.com/events/presentations.
JBT Marel First Quarter 2026 Consolidated Results
"We achieved meaningful year-over-year operational performance as we continued the margin expansion journey outlined in our strategy," said Matt Meister, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. "Additionally, we generated quarterly free cash flow of $100 million, enabling us to further deleverage our balance sheet."
First quarter 2026 consolidated revenue of $936 million increased 10 percent with approximately 6 percent benefit from foreign exchange translation. The foreign exchange benefit was largely as expected. Net income of $45 million improved $218 million, and net income margin was 4.8 percent. The improvement in net income was primarily driven by lower non-recurring and transaction related costs as well as margin enhancement efforts and lower interest expense.
First quarter 2026 consolidated adjusted EBITDA of $142 million improved $30 million, and adjusted EBITDA margin was 15.2 percent. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) was $0.86 compared to a loss per share of $3.35. Adjusted EPS was $1.58 compared to $0.97. Orders totaled $1.07 billion, inclusive of approximately $60 million in a year-over-year benefit from foreign exchange translation, and quarter-ending backlog was $1.49 billion.
First quarter 2026 operating cash flow was $119 million, and free cash flow was $100 million. As of March 31, 2026, the Company's net debt to trailing twelve months adjusted EBITDA was 2.6x.
JBT Marel First Quarter 2026 Segment Results
For the full year 2026, given the continued demand strength experienced in the first quarter 2026, JBT Marel still expects year-over-year consolidated revenue growth of 5 - 7 percent, which is inclusive of approximately 1 percent foreign exchange translation benefit.
From a tariff perspective, while there are several moving components, the Company expects the impact of recent tariff policy changes to be in-line with the previously disclosed full year 2026 estimated net impact of 25 to 50 basis points, which is inclusive of all mitigation efforts.
The Company remains on-track to achieve an estimated $60 million in realized synergy cost savings for the full year 2026.
For the full year 2026, JBT Marel expects to incur certain one-time and acquisition related costs from the Marel transaction, which are included in net income margin and GAAP diluted EPS guidance and excluded from adjusted EPS and adjusted EBITDA margin guidance. These include approximately $178 million in acquisition related amortization and depreciation, $20 million in M&A related costs, and $30 million in restructuring costs.
Full year 2026 total depreciation and amortization is expected to be approximately $268 million. Interest expense is estimated to be approximately $50 million, and other financing income related to cross currency swaps on the Term Loan B is expected to be approximately $10 million. The full year tax rate is anticipated to be 23 - 24 percent.
Earnings Conference Call
A conference call is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. ET / 14:00 GMT on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to discuss first quarter 2026 results. A simultaneous webcast and audio replay of the call will be available on the Company’s Investor Relations website at https://ir.jbtmarel.com/events/ir-calendar.
