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Nordson Corporation reported results for the fiscal third quarter ended July 31, 2024. Sales were $662 million, compared to the prior year’s third quarter sales of $649 million. The third quarter 2024 sales included a favorable acquisition impact of 4%, partially offset by an organic sales decrease of 1% and unfavorable currency translation of 1%. The organic sales decrease was driven by lower demand in electronics and medical product lines, partially offset by growth in packaging, nonwovens, and optical sensors product lines.
Net income was $117 million, or $2.04 of earnings per diluted share, compared to prior year’s third quarter net income of $128 million, or $2.22 of earnings per diluted share. Adjusted net income was $138 million, a decrease from the prior year adjusted net income of $147 million. Third quarter 2024 adjusted earnings per diluted share were $2.41, a 6% decrease from the prior year adjusted earnings per diluted share of $2.55. The decrease reflects increased interest expense from prior year acquisitions and slightly lower overall operating margins.
EBITDA in the third quarter was $208 million, or 31% of sales, compared to prior year EBITDA of $208 million, or 32% of sales. EBITDA was flat as improved gross margins were offset by higher selling and administrative expenses, including the first-year effect of the ARAG acquisition.
Commenting on the Company’s fiscal 2024 third quarter results, Nordson President and Chief Executive Officer Sundaram Nagarajan said, “We delivered third quarter revenue in line with our expectations, driven by strong organic growth in our industrial product lines. Our Advanced Technology Solutions segment sequentially grew compared to second quarter, as order entry steadily improves in electronics end markets. Across the company, the teams executed another solid operating performance delivering strong gross margins and 31% EBITDA margin. Overall, I am pleased with our focus on the customer while managing profitability well against headwinds in select businesses.”
Third Quarter Segment Results
Industrial Precision Solutions sales of $371 million increased 10% from the prior year, inclusive of a favorable acquisition impact of 7%, an organic sales increase of 4% and unfavorable currency translation of 1%. The organic sales increase was driven primarily by packaging and nonwovens product lines. Operating profit was $118 million, an increase of $3 million from the prior year. EBITDA in the quarter was $135 million, or 36% of sales, a 10% increase from the prior year third quarter EBITDA of $122 million, or 36% of sales. The year-over-year increase was driven by the ARAG acquisition, and higher organic sales and gross profit.
Medical and Fluid Solutions sales of $167 million decreased 2% compared to the prior year third quarter. The decrease was driven by lower demand in interventional solutions and fluid components product lines. Operating profit was $48 million, a decrease of $6 million from the prior year. EBITDA in the quarter was $62 million, or 37% of sales, down versus the prior year third quarter EBITDA of $68 million, or 40% of sales.
Advanced Technology Solutions sales of $124 million decreased 11% compared to the prior year third quarter, driven by lower organic sales and unfavorable currency translation of 1%. While sequentially higher, the organic sales decrease compared to prior year was driven by softness in electronics processing and x-ray and test product lines, offset by growth in optical sensors product lines. Operating profit was $23 million, a decrease of $4 million from the prior year. EBITDA in the quarter was $26 million, or 21% of sales, a decrease from the prior year third quarter EBITDA of $33 million, or 24% of sales.
Outlook
The Company is entering the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 with approximately $650 million in backlog, which continues to normalize and remain concentrated in systems businesses. Based on current visibility and order entry trends, the Company is increasing its full-year revenue guidance range to $2,665 million - $2,705 million, inclusive of revenue from the Atrion acquisition in the fiscal fourth quarter. The Company is tightening full-year adjusted earnings per diluted share to the range of $9.45 - $9.65, unchanged at the midpoint, though now inclusive of the slightly dilutive Atrion impact in the fiscal fourth quarter.
Reflecting on the outlook, Nagarajan continued, “Throughout 2024, we have remained focused on delivering high quality operating performance in a dynamic environment. The diversification of our product portfolio, geographic exposure, mix of recurring revenue, in addition to the NBS Next growth framework and the contributions of our recent acquisitions, are positioning us well to end the year in line with record fiscal 2023 revenue. I remain pleased with our ability to manage profitability during this period, while remaining invested in the long-term objectives of the business.”
