- Q1 2026 net revenues increased 10.0%, or 6.5% on a constant currency basis, compared to Q1 2025
- Q1 2026 net income of
$27 million or$0.09 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of$13 million or$0.05 per diluted share in Q1 2025 - Q1 2026 Adjusted EBITDA(1) increased 10.5%, or 6.9% on a constant currency basis
- Q1 2026 Adjusted EPS(1) of
$0.18 , an increase of 29% per diluted share - Company reaffirms full-year 2026 outlook of 5.0% - 6.5% net revenues growth and 5.5% - 7.0% Adjusted EBITDA growth, both on a constant currency basis
- Company announced planned CEO transition in a separate release today
“We delivered a strong start to the year, with solid revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth while driving margin expansion,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
Petras continued, “In addition to adding
First-Quarter 2026 Highlights
(All comparisons are against first quarter of 2025, unless otherwise noted)
- Delivered solid top- and bottom-line constant currency revenue growth
- Expanded Adjusted EBITDA margins
- Sterigenics: 6.1% constant currency revenue growth, driven by price and volume/mix
Nordion : 25.8% constant currency revenue growth; margin improvement of over 290 basis pointsNelson Labs : constant currency revenue and segment income margins as expected- Net cash provided by operating activities of
$29 million , inclusive of a previously disclosed$34 million legal settlement - As of
March 31, 2026 , Net Leverage Ratio(1) of 3.2x and over$900 million in available liquidity - Added two independent directors to the Board of Directors, further strengthening Board skill set
- Public float increased to approximately 90% of outstanding shares
_____________________________
(1) This is a non-GAAP financial measure used throughout this press release; please refer to the section “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for explanations of our Non-GAAP financial measures and the schedules provided later in this release for reconciliations of reported GAAP to Non-GAAP financial measures.
First-Quarter Review by Business Segment
(All comparisons are against first quarter of 2025, unless otherwise noted)
Sterigenics
Sterigenics delivered solid first-quarter 2026 results, with net revenues up 9.7% to
Net revenues growth was driven by favorable pricing, foreign currency benefits and improved volume/mix. Segment income was also driven by these factors, partially offset by higher costs.
Net revenues growth was driven by volume/mix benefits due to timing of cobalt-60 harvest schedules, as well as foreign currency tailwinds and favorable pricing. Segment income and segment income margin growth were also driven by these factors, partially offset by inflation.
Net revenues, segment income and segment income margin differences were driven by unfavorable volume/mix, partially offset by foreign currency benefits and favorable pricing.
Reaffirming 2026 Outlook
The 2026 outlook below, first provided on
- Net revenues in the range of
$1.233 billion to$1.251 billion , representing constant currency growth of 5.0% to 6.5% and an estimated 100bps foreign currency benefit - Adjusted EBITDA in the range of
$632 million to$641 million , representing constant currency growth of 5.5% to 7.0% and an estimated 100bps foreign currency benefit - Interest expense in the range of
$135 million to$145 million - Tax rate applicable to Adjusted Net Income(1) in the range of 27.0% to 29.0%
- Adjusted EPS in the range of
$0.93 to$1.01 - A weighted-average fully diluted share count in the range of 289 million to 291 million shares
- Capital expenditures in the range of
$175 million to$225 million
The Company does not provide a reconciliation for non-GAAP financial measures on a forward-looking basis where it is unable to provide a meaningful or accurate calculation or estimation of reconciling items without unreasonable effort. The Company cannot reconcile its expected Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income Tax Rate, Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS without unreasonable effort because certain items that impact net income, earnings per share and other reconciling metrics are out of the Company’s control and/or cannot be reasonably predicted at this time, including uncertainties caused by changes to the regulatory landscape, restructuring items and certain fair value measurements, all of which are potential adjustments for future earnings.
The outlook provided above contains a number of assumptions, including, among others, the Company’s current expectations regarding supply chain continuity, particularly for the supply of ethylene oxide (“EO”) and Cobalt-60, and the impact of inflationary trends including their impact on energy prices and the supply of labor. Our outlook is based on current plans and expectations and is subject to several known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including those set forth below under “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Earnings Webcast
Upcoming Investor Events
RBC Capital Markets Global Healthcare Conference at3:05 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time ,May 19, 2026 Sotera Health 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders at9:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time ,May 21, 2026 - 2026
Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference at2:35 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time ,June 3, 2026 - Goldman Sachs 47th Annual Global Healthcare Conference at
11:20 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time ,June 8, 2026
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Unless expressly indicated or the context requires otherwise, the terms “Sotera Health,” “Company,” “we,” “us,” and “our” in this release refer to
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with GAAP, we consider Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, Adjusted Tax Rate, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, Segment income margin, Net Debt and Net Leverage Ratio and constant currency, financial measures that are not based on any standardized methodology prescribed by GAAP.
- We define Adjusted Net Income as net income (loss) before amortization and certain other adjustments that we do not consider in our evaluation of our ongoing operating performance from period to period.
- We define Adjusted EBITDA as Adjusted Net Income before interest expense, depreciation (including depreciation of Cobalt-60 used in our operations) and income tax provision applicable to Adjusted Net Income.
- Adjusted EBITDA margin is equal to Adjusted EBITDA divided by net revenues.
- Segment income margin is equal to segment income divided by net segment revenues.
- We define Adjusted EPS as Adjusted Net Income divided by the weighted average number of diluted shares outstanding.
- Our Net Debt is equal to our total debt, plus unamortized debt issuance costs and debt discounts, less cash and cash equivalents.
- Our Net Leverage Ratio is equal to Net Debt divided by Adjusted EBITDA.
Constant currency is a non-GAAP financial measure we use to assess performance excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange rate changes. We calculate constant currency net revenues by translating prior year net revenues in local currency at the average exchange rates applicable for the current period. The translated results are then used to determine year-over-year percentage increases or decreases. We generally refer to such amounts calculated on a constant currency basis as excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange rates. These results should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, results reported in accordance with GAAP. Results on a constant currency basis, as we present them, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies and are not measures of performance presented in accordance with GAAP.
We use these non-GAAP financial measures as the principal measures of our operating performance. Management believes these measures allow management to more effectively evaluate our operating performance and compare the results of our operations from period to period without the impact of certain non-cash items and non-routine items that we do not expect to continue at the same level in the future and other items that are not core to our operations. We believe that these measures are useful to our investors because they provide a more complete understanding of the factors and trends affecting our business than could be obtained without these measures and their disclosure. In addition, we believe these measures will assist investors in making comparisons to our historical operating results and analyzing the underlying performance of our operations for the periods presented. Our management also uses these measurements in their financial analysis and operational decision-making and Adjusted EBITDA serves as the key metric for the attainment of our primary annual incentive program. These measures may be calculated differently from, and therefore may not be comparable to, a similarly titled measure used by other companies.
About
Updates on recent developments in matters relevant to investors can be found on the Investor Relations section of the
INVESTOR RELATIONS CONTACT
Vice President Investor Relations
IR@soterahealth.com
MEDIA CONTACT
Chief Marketing Officer
kgibbs@soterahealth.com
Source:
Consolidated Statements of Operations (in thousands, except per share amounts) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Revenues: | ||||||||
| Service | $ | 241,608 | $ | 223,940 | ||||
| Product | 38,437 | 30,583 | ||||||
| Total net revenues | 280,045 | 254,523 | ||||||
| Cost of revenues: | ||||||||
| Service | 118,828 | 107,629 | ||||||
| Product | 14,148 | 11,462 | ||||||
| Total cost of revenues | 132,976 | 119,091 | ||||||
| Gross profit | 147,069 | 135,432 | ||||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses | 68,211 | 63,061 | ||||||
| Amortization of intangible assets | 3,031 | 15,327 | ||||||
| Illinois EO litigation settlement | — | 30,943 | ||||||
| Interest expense, net | 34,745 | 40,876 | ||||||
| Foreign exchange (gain) loss | (571 | ) | 289 | |||||
| Other income, net | (960 | ) | (241 | ) | ||||
| Income (Loss) before income taxes | 42,613 | (14,823 | ) | |||||
| Provision (Benefit) for income taxes | 16,024 | (1,563 | ) | |||||
| Net income (loss) | $ | 26,589 | $ | (13,260 | ) | |||
| Earnings (Loss) per share: | ||||||||
| Basic | $ | 0.09 | $ | (0.05 | ) | |||
| Diluted | 0.09 | (0.05 | ) | |||||
| Weighted average number of shares outstanding: | ||||||||
| Basic | 284,887 | 283,558 | ||||||
| Diluted | 287,622 | 283,558 | ||||||
Segment Data (in thousands) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Segment revenues: | ||||||||
| Sterigenics | $ | 186,135 | $ | 169,684 | ||||
| 42,009 | 32,557 | |||||||
| 51,901 | 52,282 | |||||||
| Total net revenues | $ | 280,045 | $ | 254,523 | ||||
| Segment income: | ||||||||
| Sterigenics | $ | 96,414 | $ | 88,004 | ||||
| 23,711 | 17,422 | |||||||
| 14,528 | 16,413 | |||||||
| Total segment income | 134,653 | 121,839 | ||||||
| Less adjustments: | ||||||||
| Interest expense, net | 34,745 | 40,876 | ||||||
| Depreciation and amortization(a) | 30,744 | 40,734 | ||||||
| Share-based compensation(b) | 14,442 | 7,269 | ||||||
| Loss on foreign currency and derivatives not designated as hedging instruments, net(c) | 624 | 1,891 | ||||||
| Business optimization expenses(d) | 957 | 2,047 | ||||||
| Professional services relating to EO sterilization facilities(e) | 9,855 | 12,328 | ||||||
| Illinois EO litigation settlement(f) | — | 30,943 | ||||||
| Accretion of asset retirement obligations(g) | 673 | 574 | ||||||
| Consolidated income (loss) before income taxes | $ | 42,613 | $ | (14,823 | ) | |||
(a) Includes depreciation of Co-60 held at gamma irradiation sites and excludes accelerated depreciation associated with business optimization activities. (b) Represents share-based compensation expense to employees and Non-Employee Directors. (c) Represents the effects of (i) fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and (ii) non-cash mark-to-fair value of embedded derivatives relating to certain customer and supply contracts at (d) Represents (i) certain costs related to divestitures, acquisitions and the integration of acquisitions, (ii) professional fees and other costs associated with business optimization, cost saving and other process enhancement projects, and (iii) legal, consulting, and other fees associated with secondary offerings and shareholder engagement. (e) Represents litigation and other professional fees associated with our EO sterilization facilities. (f) Represents the cost to settle 97 pending and threatened EO claims against Sterigenics in (g) Represents non-cash accretion of asset retirement obligations (“ARO”) related to Co-60 gamma and EO processing facilities, which are based on estimated site remediation costs for any future decommissioning of these facilities and are accreted over the life of the asset. | ||||||||
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| As of | As of | |||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Assets | ||||||||
| Current assets: | ||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 315,945 | $ | 346,456 | ||||
| Accounts receivable, net | 137,256 | 139,329 | ||||||
| Inventories, net | 57,494 | 54,375 | ||||||
| Other current assets | 75,276 | 73,250 | ||||||
| Total current assets | 585,971 | 613,410 | ||||||
| Property, plant, and equipment, net | 1,143,452 | 1,130,564 | ||||||
| Operating lease assets | 32,896 | 33,393 | ||||||
| Other intangible assets, net | 279,357 | 288,227 | ||||||
| 1,097,634 | 1,103,232 | |||||||
| Other assets | 96,588 | 94,364 | ||||||
| Total assets | $ | 3,235,898 | $ | 3,263,190 | ||||
| Liabilities and equity | ||||||||
| Total current liabilities | $ | 207,804 | $ | 249,584 | ||||
| Long-term debt, less current portion | 2,124,327 | 2,126,724 | ||||||
| Other noncurrent liabilities | 206,220 | 209,772 | ||||||
| Deferred income taxes | 75,042 | 71,075 | ||||||
| Total liabilities | 2,613,393 | 2,657,155 | ||||||
| Total equity | 622,505 | 606,035 | ||||||
| Total liabilities and equity | $ | 3,235,898 | $ | 3,263,190 | ||||
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (in thousands) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Operating activities: | ||||||||
| Net income (loss) | $ | 26,589 | $ | (13,260 | ) | |||
| Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities: | ||||||||
| Non-cash items | 48,950 | 39,310 | ||||||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities | (46,104 | ) | 29,471 | |||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | 29,435 | 55,521 | ||||||
| Investing activities: | ||||||||
| Purchases of property, plant and equipment | (46,166 | ) | (19,918 | ) | ||||
| Other investing activities | 1,038 | 37 | ||||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (45,128 | ) | (19,881 | ) | ||||
| Financing activities: | ||||||||
| Payment on long-term borrowings | (3,558 | ) | (3,773 | ) | ||||
| Payments of debt issuance costs | — | (10 | ) | |||||
| Shares withheld for employee taxes on equity awards | (8,802 | ) | (3,600 | ) | ||||
| Other financing activities | (419 | ) | (704 | ) | ||||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (12,779 | ) | (8,087 | ) | ||||
| Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents | (2,039 | ) | (337 | ) | ||||
| Net (decrease) increase in cash and cash equivalents, including restricted cash | (30,511 | ) | 27,216 | |||||
| Cash and cash equivalents, including restricted cash, at beginning of period | 346,456 | 278,865 | ||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents, including restricted cash, at end of period | $ | 315,945 | $ | 306,081 | ||||
| Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information: | ||||||||
| Cash paid during the period for interest | $ | 36,546 | $ | 47,416 | ||||
| Cash paid during the period for income taxes, net of tax refunds received | 9,200 | 12,215 | ||||||
| Purchases of property, plant and equipment included in accounts payable | 20,689 | 13,042 | ||||||
Non-GAAP Financial Measures (in thousands, except per share amounts) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Net income (loss) | $ | 26,589 | $ | (13,260 | ) | |||
| Amortization of intangible assets | 5,602 | 18,674 | ||||||
| Share-based compensation(a) | 14,442 | 7,269 | ||||||
| Loss on foreign currency and derivatives not designated as hedging instruments, net(b) | 624 | 1,891 | ||||||
| Business optimization expenses(c) | 957 | 2,047 | ||||||
| Professional services relating to EO sterilization facilities(d) | 9,855 | 12,328 | ||||||
| Illinois EO litigation settlement(e) | — | 30,943 | ||||||
| Accretion of asset retirement obligations(f) | 673 | 574 | ||||||
| Income tax benefit associated with pre-tax adjustments(g) | (6,376 | ) | (21,422 | ) | ||||
| Adjusted Net Income | 52,366 | 39,044 | ||||||
| Interest expense, net | 34,745 | 40,876 | ||||||
| Depreciation(h) | 25,142 | 22,060 | ||||||
| Income tax provision applicable to Adjusted Net Income(i) | 22,400 | 19,859 | ||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA(j) | $ | 134,653 | $ | 121,839 | ||||
| Net Revenues | $ | 280,045 | $ | 254,523 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 48.1 | % | 47.9 | % | ||||
| Weighted average number of shares outstanding | ||||||||
| Basic | 284,887 | 283,558 | ||||||
| Diluted(k) | 287,622 | 285,714 | ||||||
| Earnings (Loss) per share | ||||||||
| Basic | $ | 0.09 | $ | (0.05 | ) | |||
| Diluted | 0.09 | (0.05 | ) | |||||
| Adjusted earnings per share | ||||||||
| Basic | $ | 0.18 | $ | 0.14 | ||||
| Diluted | 0.18 | 0.14 | ||||||
(a) Represents share-based compensation expense to employees and Non-Employee Directors. (b) Represents the effects of (i) fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and (ii) non-cash mark-to-fair value of embedded derivatives relating to certain customer and supply contracts at (c) Represents (i) certain costs related to divestitures, acquisitions and the integration of acquisitions, (ii) professional fees and other costs associated with business optimization, cost saving and other process enhancement projects, and (iii) legal, consulting, and other fees associated with secondary offerings and shareholder engagement. (d) Represents litigation and other professional fees associated with our EO sterilization facilities. (e) Represents the cost to settle 97 pending and threatened EO claims against Sterigenics in (f) Represents non-cash accretion of ARO related to Co-60 gamma and EO processing facilities, which are based on estimated site remediation costs for any future decommissioning of these facilities and are accreted over the life of the asset. (g) Represents the income tax impact of adjustments calculated based on the tax rate applicable to each item. We eliminate the effect of tax rate changes as applied to tax assets and liabilities and unusual items from our presentation of adjusted net income. (h) Includes depreciation of Co-60 held at gamma irradiation sites and excludes accelerated depreciation associated with business optimization activities. (i) Represents the difference between the income tax provision as determined under (j) (k) For the three months ended | ||||||||
Non-GAAP Financial Measures (in thousands, except Net Leverage) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| As of | As of | |||||||
| 2026 | 2025 | |||||||
| Current portion of long-term debt | $ | 13,983 | $ | 13,973 | ||||
| Long-term debt | 2,124,327 | 2,126,724 | ||||||
| Current portion of finance leases | 3,577 | 3,465 | ||||||
| Finance leases less current portion | 93,201 | 93,835 | ||||||
| Total Debt | $ | 2,235,088 | $ | 2,237,997 | ||||
| Less: cash and cash equivalents | (314,147 | ) | (344,621 | ) | ||||
| Net Debt | $ | 1,920,941 | $ | 1,893,376 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA(a) | $ | 606,615 | $ | 593,801 | ||||
| Net Leverage | 3.2 | x | 3.2 | x | ||||
(a) Represents adjusted EBITDA for the twelve months ended | ||||||||
Non-GAAP Financial Measures (in thousands) (unaudited) | ||||||||
| Twelve months ended | ||||||||
| Net income | $ | 117,798 | $ | 77,949 | ||||
| Amortization of intangible assets | 28,726 | 41,798 | ||||||
| Share-based compensation(a) | 38,241 | 31,068 | ||||||
| Loss on refinancing of debt(b) | 1,462 | 1,462 | ||||||
| (Gain) Loss on foreign currency and derivatives not designated as hedging instruments, net(c) | (1,209 | ) | 58 | |||||
| Business optimization expenses(d) | 6,978 | 8,068 | ||||||
| Professional services relating to EO sterilization facilities(e) | 43,752 | 46,225 | ||||||
| Illinois EO litigation settlements(f) | 34,000 | 64,943 | ||||||
| Accretion of asset retirement obligations(g) | 2,420 | 2,321 | ||||||
| Income tax benefit associated with pre-tax adjustments(h) | (13,432 | ) | (28,478 | ) | ||||
| Adjusted Net Income | 258,736 | 245,414 | ||||||
| Interest expense, net | 149,591 | 155,722 | ||||||
| Depreciation(i) | 97,712 | 94,630 | ||||||
| Income tax provision applicable to Adjusted Net Income(j) | 100,576 | 98,035 | ||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA(k) | $ | 606,615 | $ | 593,801 | ||||
| Net Revenues | $ | 1,189,139 | $ | 1,163,617 | ||||
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 51.0 | % | 51.0 | % | ||||
(a) Represents share-based compensation expense to employees and Non-Employee Directors. (b) Represents the write-off of unamortized debt issuance costs and discounts, as well as certain other costs incurred related to the refinancing activity for the Term Loans, the Secured Notes and the Revolving Credit Facility. (c) Represents the effects of (i) fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and (ii) non-cash mark-to-fair value of embedded derivatives relating to certain customer and supply contracts at (d) Represents (i) certain costs related to divestitures, acquisitions and the integration of acquisitions, (ii) professional fees and other costs associated with business optimization, cost saving and other process enhancement projects, and (iii) legal, consulting, and other fees associated with secondary offerings and shareholder engagement. (e) Represents litigation and other professional fees associated with our EO sterilization facilities. (f) Represents (i) the cost to settle 97 pending and threatened EO claims against Sterigenics in (g) Represents non-cash accretion of ARO related to Co-60 gamma and EO processing facilities, which are based on estimated site remediation costs for any future decommissioning of these facilities and are accreted over the life of the asset. (h) Represents the income tax impact of adjustments calculated based on the tax rate applicable to each item. We eliminate the effect of tax rate changes as applied to tax assets and liabilities and unusual items from our presentation of adjusted net income. (i) Includes depreciation of Co-60 held at gamma irradiation sites and excludes accelerated depreciation associated with business optimization activities. (j) Represents the difference between income tax provision or benefit as determined under (k) | ||||||||
Source: