Infrastructure business drives stronger-than-expected results
Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) reported better-than-expected second-quarter results on Tuesday, beating Wall Street forecasts for both earnings and revenue as strong demand across its infrastructure operations supported growth.
Shares edged 0.76% higher in pre-market trading following the announcement.
Adjusted earnings came in at $6.14 per share, exceeding the analyst consensus estimate of $5.80. Revenue increased 6.5% year over year to $1.12 billion, ahead of expectations of $1.09 billion.
Utility and coatings businesses lead growth
The Infrastructure segment remained the company’s largest growth driver, with revenue climbing 14.8% to $878.9 million, accounting for nearly four-fifths of total sales.
Within the segment, North America Utility revenue jumped 33.9%, while North America Coatings posted growth of 16.6%, supported by higher volumes and favourable pricing.
The Agriculture segment, however, faced more challenging conditions, with sales declining 15.8% to $243.7 million as weaker North American demand and disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict weighed on performance.
“Valmont delivered solid second quarter results, demonstrating the execution of our strategy and the strength of our market-leading businesses,” said President and CEO Avner M. Applbaum.
“In North America Utility and Coatings, commercial excellence, pricing discipline, and ongoing investments in capacity and operations drove another quarter of strong performance.”
Company lifts 2026 guidance
Following the strong quarter, Valmont raised its financial outlook for fiscal 2026.
The company now expects earnings per share of between $22.25 and $23.50, compared with its previous guidance of $21.50 to $23.50. The midpoint of $22.88 is slightly above the analyst consensus estimate of $22.83.
Valmont also increased its revenue forecast to a range of $4.3 billion to $4.45 billion, up from the previous outlook of $4.2 billion to $4.4 billion. The midpoint of $4.38 billion also exceeds market expectations of $4.31 billion.
Cash generation remains strong
Operating income totaled $166.1 million during the quarter, representing 14.8% of net sales, compared with $29.3 million in the prior-year period.
The company generated $148.1 million in operating cash flow and returned $74.9 million to shareholders through $60.0 million of share repurchases and $14.9 million in dividend payments.
Valmont Industries stock price
