Montvale, NJ, February 21, 2025 - Balchem Corporation (NASDAQ: BCPC) reported today financial results for its 2024 fiscal fourth quarter ended December 31, 2024. For the quarter, the Company reported net sales of $240.0 million, net earnings of $33.6 million, adjusted EBITDA(a) of $62.8 million, and free cash flow(a) of $39.8 million.

Ted Harris, Chairman, President, and CEO of Balchem said, “The fourth quarter capped off another very strong year for Balchem. We delivered record fourth quarter net sales and adjusted EBITDA, with top and bottom line year over year growth in each of our three segments.”

•Record net sales of $240.0 million, an increase of $11.3 million, or 4.9%, compared to the prior year quarter.

•GAAP net earnings were $33.6 million, an increase of 26.0% from the prior year quarter.

•Record adjusted EBITDA was $62.8 million, an increase of 13.4% from the prior year quarter.

•GAAP earnings per share of $1.03 compared to $0.82 in the prior year quarter and adjusted earnings per share(a) of $1.13 compared to $0.95 in the prior year quarter.

•Cash flows from operations were $52.3 million, with free cash flow(a) of $39.8 million.

Mr. Harris added, “For the full year 2024, we delivered record net sales and adjusted EBITDA while generating very strong free cash flow, allowing us to increase our dividend once again by double digits and significantly strengthen our balance sheet by paying down $119.6 million of debt.”

•Record full year net sales of $953.7 million, an increase of $31.2 million or 3.4%, compared to the prior year with record sales achieved in the Human Nutrition & Health and Specialty Products segments.

•GAAP net earnings were $128.5 million, an increase of 18.4% from the prior year. These net earnings resulted in GAAP earnings per share of $3.93 compared to $3.35 in the prior year.

•Record adjusted EBITDA was $250.3 million, an increase of 8.4%, from the prior year.

•Adjusted net earnings were $143.0 million, an increase of 10.2% from the prior year. These adjusted net earnings resulted in adjusted earnings per share of $4.37 compared to $4.00 in the prior year.

•Cash flows from operations were $182.0 million for 2024, with free cash flow of $147.2 million.

Mr. Harris continued, “As we transition to focusing on 2025 and beyond, I remain excited about the growth opportunities that lie ahead for Balchem and I believe we are well positioned to deliver ongoing growth for our shareholders.”

The Human Nutrition & Health segment generated fourth quarter sales of $147.3 million, an increase of $9.3 million, or 6.8%, compared to the prior year quarter. The increase was driven by higher sales within both the food ingredients and solutions businesses and the nutrients business. Fourth quarter earnings from operations for this segment were $33.8 million, an increase of $8.5 million, or 33.9%, compared to $25.2 million in the prior year quarter, primarily due to the aforementioned higher sales and a favorable mix. Excluding the effect of non-cash expense associated with amortization of acquired intangible assets and other adjustments, adjusted earnings from operations(a) for this segment were $36.5 million, compared to $29.9 million in the prior year quarter, an increase of 21.8%.

The Animal Nutrition & Health segment generated quarterly sales of $58.3 million, an increase of $0.2 million, or 0.3%, compared to the prior year quarter. The increase was driven by higher sales in the ruminant species markets, partially offset by lower sales in the monogastric species markets. Fourth quarter earnings from operations for this segment were $5.7 million, an increase of $0.4 million, or 7.2%, compared to $5.3 million in the prior year quarter, primarily due to the aforementioned higher sales and favorable mix, partially offset by higher operating expenses. Excluding the effect of non-cash expense associated with amortization of acquired intangible assets and other adjustments, adjusted earnings from operations for this segment were $5.9 million, compared to $5.6 million in the prior year quarter, an increase of 6.5%.

The Specialty Products segment generated fourth quarter sales of $32.9 million, an increase of $1.8 million, or 6.0%, compared to the prior year quarter, due to higher sales in the performance gases business. Fourth quarter earnings from operations for this segment were $10.0 million, an increase of $1.4 million, or 15.9%, compared to $8.6 million in the prior year quarter, primarily driven by the aforementioned higher sales and favorable mix, partially offset by higher operating expenses. Excluding the effect of non-cash expense associated with amortization of acquired intangible assets and other adjustments, adjusted earnings from operations for this segment were $10.9 million, compared to $9.8 million in the prior year quarter, an increase of 11.2%.

Consolidated quarterly gross margin of $86.3 million increased by $11.3 million, or 15.1%, compared to $75.0 million for the prior year comparable period. Gross margin as a percentage of sales was 36.0% as compared to 32.8% in the prior year period, an increase of 320 basis points, primarily due to a favorable mix. Operating expenses of $38.9 million for the quarter increased $2.2 million from the prior year comparable quarter, primarily due to an increase in transaction costs, higher compensation-related expenses, and an increase in outside services, partially offset by lower amortization. Excluding non-cash operating expenses associated with amortization of intangible assets of $3.2 million, operating expenses were $35.7 million, or 14.9% of sales.

Net interest expense was $2.8 million and $5.3 million in the fourth quarters of 2024 and 2023, respectively. The decrease in interest expense was primarily due to lower outstanding borrowings. Our effective tax rates for the three months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 were 24.5% and 19.9%, respectively. The increase in the effective tax rate from the prior year was primarily due to an increase in certain foreign taxes.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2024, cash flows provided by operating activities were $52.3 million and free cash flow was $39.8 million. The $156.1 million of net working capital on December 31, 2024 included a cash balance of $49.5 million. Significant cash payments during the quarter included repayments on the revolving loan of $37.0 million, cash paid for an acquisition net of cash acquired of $24.2 million, capital expenditures and intangible assets acquired of $12.7 million, and income taxes paid of $11.1 million.

Ted Harris, Chairman, President, and CEO of Balchem said, “2024 was another very strong year for Balchem and I would like to thank all of our over 1,300 employees for their contributions to these results and the progress we have made on our strategic growth initiatives. I am excited about our future.”

A quarterly conference call will be held on Friday, February 21, 2025, at 11:00 AM Eastern Time (ET) to review fourth quarter 2024 results. Ted Harris, Chairman, President, and CEO and Martin Bengtsson, CFO will host the call. We invite you to listen to the conference by calling toll-free 1-877-407-8289 (local dial-in 1-201-689-8341), five minutes prior to the scheduled start time of the conference call. The conference call will be available for replay three hours after the conclusion of the call through end of day Friday, March 7, 2025. To access the replay of the conference call, dial 1-877-660-6853 (local dial-in 1-201-612-7415), and use conference ID #13751680.

Balchem Corporation reports three business segments: Human Nutrition & Health, Animal Nutrition & Health, and Specialty Products. The Human Nutrition & Health segment delivers customized food and beverage ingredient systems, as well as key nutrients into a variety of applications across the food, supplement and pharmaceutical industries. The Animal Nutrition & Health segment manufactures and supplies products to numerous animal health markets. Through Specialty Products, Balchem provides specialty-packaged chemicals for use in healthcare and other industries, and also provides chelated minerals to the micronutrient agricultural market. Sales and production of products outside of our reportable segments and other minor business activities are included in "Other and Unallocated".

This release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which reflect our expectation or belief concerning future events that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "project," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "forecast," "outlook," "intend," "strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar expressions generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may relate to such matters as projections of revenue, margins, expenses, tax provisions, earnings, cash flows, benefit obligations, dividends, share purchases or other financial items; any statements of the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations, including those relating to any statements concerning expected development, performance or market share relating to our products and services; any statements regarding future economic conditions or our performance; any statements regarding pending investigations, claims or disputes; any statements of expectation or belief; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. These statements are based on the Company's currently available information and our current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. They are subject to future events, risks and uncertainties - many of which are beyond the Company’s control - as well as potentially inaccurate assumptions, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Important factors and other risks that may affect the Company's business or that could cause actual results to differ materially are included in filings the Company makes with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K, its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, its Current Reports on Form 8-K, and in its other SEC filings. Reference should be made to such factors and all forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by the above cautionary statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contact: Jacqueline Yarmolowicz, Balchem Corporation (Telephone: 845-326-5600)

(unaudited)

						Year Ended December 31,
						2024						2023
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net earnings						$	128,475					$	108,543
Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization						47,973						54,935
Stock compensation expense						16,675						16,052
Other adjustments						(5,007)						(15,779)
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of acquired balances						(6,117)						20,010
Net cash provided by operating activities						181,999						183,761
Cash flows from investing activities:
Capital expenditures and intangible assets acquired						(35,661)						(37,892)
Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired						(24,164)						(1,252)
Proceeds from sale of assets						359						1,881
Proceeds from settlement of net investment hedge						—						2,740
Investment in affiliates						(270)						(290)
Net cash used in investing activities						(59,736)						(34,813)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Proceeds from revolving loan						26,000						18,000
Principal payments on revolving debt						(145,569)						(149,000)
Principal payments on finance lease						(216)						(222)
Proceeds from stock options exercised						17,228						5,242
Dividends paid						(25,576)						(22,872)
Repurchases of common stock						(5,682)						(4,469)
Net cash used in financing activities						(133,815)						(153,321)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash						(3,380)						2,260
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents						(14,932)						(2,113)
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period						64,447						66,560
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period						$	49,515					$	64,447

In addition to disclosing financial results in accordance with United States (U.S.) generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), this earnings release contains non-GAAP financial measures that we believe are helpful in understanding and comparing our past financial performance and our future results. The non-GAAP financial measures in this press release include adjusted gross margin, adjusted earnings from operations, adjusted net earnings and the related adjusted per diluted share amounts, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted income tax expense, and free cash flow. The non-GAAP financial measures disclosed by the company exclude certain business combination accounting adjustments and certain other items related to acquisitions, certain equity compensation, nonqualified deferred compensation plan expense (income), and certain one-time or unusual transactions. Detailed non-GAAP adjustments are described in the reconciliation tables below and also explained in the related footnotes. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP, and the financial results calculated in accordance with GAAP and reconciliations from these results should be carefully evaluated. Investors should not consider non-GAAP measures as alternatives to the related GAAP measures.

Set forth below are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures.

(unaudited)

(unaudited)

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(unaudited)