H.B. Fuller Reports First Quarter Fiscal 2021 Results

Organic revenue growth of 10.5% driven by share gains and strong demand

First quarter net income of $30 million; adjusted EBITDA of $101 million up 30% year-over-year

Company raises its full year guidance on stronger outlook for revenue and EBITDA growth

ST. PAUL, Minn. – H.B. Fuller Company (NYSE: FUL) today reported financial results for the first quarter ended Feb. 27, 2021.

Items of Note for First Quarter 2021

Summary of First Quarter 2021 Results

Net revenue of $726 million increased 12.3% compared with the first quarter of 2020. Foreign currency exchange rates favorably impacted revenue by 1.8%. Organic revenue, which excludes impacts from foreign currency translation, increased 10.5% versus last year. Strong sales growth in Engineering Adhesives and Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives offset effects of slower commercial construction and extreme weather on Construction Adhesives revenues.

Gross profit margin was 26.5%. Adjusted gross profit margin of 26.7% increased 20 basis points versus last year on higher sales volume. Selling, General and Administrative (SG&A) expense was $144 million. Adjusted SG&A expense of $138 million was down 170 basis points as a percent of revenue versus the first quarter last year, driven by savings related to the business reorganization to our three Global Business Units (GBUs) and lower travel expense.

As a result of these factors, net income attributable to H.B. Fuller in the quarter was $30 million, or $0.56 per diluted share. Adjusted net income attributable to H.B. Fuller of $35 million and adjusted EPS of $0.66 nearly doubled compared with $18 million and $0.34, respectively, in the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA of $101 million increased 30% compared with $78 million in the prior year, and adjusted EBITDA margin of 13.9% improved 190 basis points versus last year.

The company reported in March of 2020 that the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in China in early 2020 negatively impacted its first quarter 2020 business results by an estimated $15 million of revenue, $4.5 million of EBITDA, and $0.06 of EPS, in the comparable period last year.

“Leveraging the momentum we created throughout 2020, the H.B. Fuller team delivered exceptional financial performance of 30% growth in EBITDA in the first quarter of fiscal 2021,” said Jim Owens, H.B. Fuller president and chief executive officer. “It is clear that our diversified business model, coupled with a global focus on operational agility and market-driven innovation, are competitive advantages for H.B. Fuller in the adhesives industry, especially in a changing world. In 2021, we will focus on continuing to grow our business profitably by innovating and supporting our customers’ success in the current, high-demand and supply-constrained environment. H.B. Fuller has done a remarkable job in supporting customers through effective sourcing strategies and supply chain management. In the second quarter, we have implemented significant price adjustments which will enable us to continue to seamlessly serve our customers. In addition, our team is working to release additional capacity for growth through our operational excellence programs and to achieve an additional $200 million of debt reduction in 2021.”

Key Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Items

At the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2021, the company had cash on hand of $81 million and total debt equal to $1,758 million. This compares to cash and debt levels equal to $79 million and $1,973 million, respectively, at the end of the first quarter of 2020. Cash flow from operations for the first quarter was $36 million, up from $34 million in the same period last year, driven by strong income growth partly offset by higher working capital due to increased sales. Capital expenditures in the first quarter were $35 million compared with $32 million in the same period last year.

2021 Planning Assumptions

H.B. Fuller has updated its planning assumptions for fiscal year 2021 based on current market conditions:

Conference Call

The Company will host an investor conference call to discuss fourth quarter results on Thursday, March 25, 2021, at 12:30 p.m. EDT. The conference call will be available to interested parties via a webcast, and may be accessed from the company's website at https://investors.hbfuller.com. Participants should access the webcast prior to the start of the call to register for the event and install and test any necessary software. The webcast and presentation will be archived on the Company’s website. A telephone replay of the conference call will be available from approximately 3:30 p.m. EDT on March 25, 2021 through 11:59 p.m. EDT on April 1, 2021. To access the telephone replay dial (800) 585-8367 or (416) 621-4642 and enter Conference ID: 5378986.

Regulation G

The information presented in this earnings release regarding segment 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 generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and should not be construed as an alternative to the reported results determined in accordance with 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 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 2021 Planning Assumptions, 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 2020 net revenue of $2.8 billion, H.B. Fuller’s commitment to innovation 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 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 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.