Enerpac Tool Group (EPAC) Telefonkonferenz zu den Ergebnissen des 4. Quartals des Geschäftsjahres 2026: Prognose für das Geschäftsjahr 2027 und SFE-Übernahme

Wichtigste Erkenntnisse

• Die Enerpac Tool Group schloss das Geschäftsjahr 2026 mit einem Rekordjahresumsatz von 652 Millionen US-Dollar ab, was einem organischen Plus von 4 % entspricht. Währungseffekte trugen rund 2 Prozentpunkte zum ausgewiesenen Wachstum bei.
• Das organische Wachstum im Segment Industrial Tools & Services (IT&S) erreichte im vierten Quartal des Geschäftsjahres 10 %, gestützt auf eine starke Produkt- und Serviceentwicklung sowie eine besonders robuste Nachfrage in der Region Amerika.
• Der freie Cashflow für das Geschäftsjahr 2026 stieg um 30 % auf 120 Millionen US-Dollar. Die Nettoverschuldung im Verhältnis zum bereinigten EBITDA lag am Jahresende vor Abschluss der Übernahme der SFE Group bei 0,1x.
• Die bereinigte EBITDA-Marge ging im vierten Quartal des Geschäftsjahres von 26,5 % im Vorjahreszeitraum auf 22,6 % zurück. Dies spiegelt den Geschäftsmix, höhere erfolgsabhängige Vergütungen und Investitionen in die Propel-Strategie wider.
• Das Management prognostiziert für das Geschäftsjahr 2027 einen Umsatz von 825 bis 845 Millionen US-Dollar, ein organisches Wachstum von 4 % bis 6 %, ein bereinigtes EBITDA von 195 bis 205 Millionen US-Dollar und ein bereinigtes Ergebnis je Aktie von 2,00 bis 2,15 US-Dollar.
• Enerpac schloss die Übernahme der SFE Group im Wert von rund 472 Millionen US-Dollar am 28. Oktober ab. Das Management geht davon aus, dass sich die Transaktion im Geschäftsjahr 2027 positiv auf das bereinigte Ergebnis je Aktie auswirken wird, und strebt bis zum dritten Jahr Synergien von 4 bis 6 Millionen US-Dollar an.

Wichtige Finanzdaten

Geschäfts- und operative Entwicklung

Die Region Amerika führte das IT&S-Wachstum an, wobei der organische Jahresumsatz um 10 % stieg. Das vierte Quartal des Geschäftsjahres profitierte von Standardprodukten, der Schwerlasttechnologie (Heavy Lifting Technology) und der Servicenachfrage. Das Management nannte Infrastruktur, den Bau von Rechenzentren, Energieerzeugung, Verteidigung und US-Reshoring-Aktivitäten als Haupttreiber.

Das Unternehmen gab an, dass seine Präsenz im Bereich Rechenzentren in erster Linie über Hersteller von Generatoren und anderen Energieanlagen erfolgt und nicht direkt über Hyperscaler. Die Nachfrage umfasste Folgeaufträge für kleinere Portalhebesysteme (Gantries) und E-Mover der Schwerlasttechnologie. Laut Management sind Verfügbarkeit und kurze Lieferzeiten für diese Kunden von besonderer Bedeutung.

Der organische Umsatz in der Region EMEA ging im Gesamtjahr um 3 % zurück. Dem Wachstum bei Standardprodukten und in der Schwerlasttechnologie standen schwächere Serviceumsätze gegenüber, darunter Belastungen aus dem Nordseemarkt und der eingeschränkte Zugang zu einigen Regionen im Nahen Osten. Im vierten Quartal kehrten die Serviceumsätze in EMEA dennoch auf Wachstumskurs zurück, gestützt durch LNG-Wartungs- und Stillstandsarbeiten.

In der Region Asien-Pazifik sank der organische Umsatz um 1 %, da das Wachstum in der Schwerlasttechnologie durch geringere Serviceumsätze kompensiert wurde. Die Produktdynamik blieb in Indien, Korea und Australien stark, wobei das Management darauf hinwies, dass die Quartalsergebnisse aufgrund des relativ geringen Gesamtvolumens der Region schwanken können.

Cortland setzte das zweistellige Wachstum durch den Gewinn neuer Kunden und Projekte fort. In allen drei Regionen stiegen die Auftragseingänge im vierten Quartal im zweistelligen Prozentbereich.

Enerpac brachte im Geschäftsjahr 2026 insgesamt 11 Produkte auf den Markt, nach fünf im Vorjahr. Die Ausgaben für Forschung und Entwicklung stiegen in den letzten drei Jahren mit einer durchschnittlichen jährlichen Wachstumsrate von 11 %, und das Management plant, die Investitionen in Produktinnovationen weiter zu steigern.

Übernahme der SFE Group und Kapitalallokation

Enerpac zahlte rund 472 Millionen US-Dollar für die SFE Group, bestehend aus etwa 452 Millionen US-Dollar in bar und rund 20 Millionen US-Dollar in Aktienvergütungen, die anstelle von Transaktionsboni gewährt wurden. Der Kaufpreis entsprach dem 10,6-Fachen des bereinigten EBITDA von SFE der letzten zwölf Monate beziehungsweise dem 9,5-Fachen unter Berücksichtigung der erwarteten Synergien.

SFE erweitert den adressierbaren Gesamtmarkt von Enerpac um rund 1 Milliarde US-Dollar. Etwa 74 % des Umsatzes von SFE werden in der Region Amerika erwirtschaftet, was den Anteil dieser Region am zusammengeschlossenen Unternehmen erhöht.

Das Management strebt bis zum dritten Jahr Synergien in Höhe von 4 bis 6 Millionen US-Dollar an. Es rechnet damit, dass der Verschuldungsgrad gestützt auf das freie Cashflow-Profil von SFE von etwa 2,3x bei Abschluss auf rund 2x bis zum Ende des ersten Jahres sinken wird. Der Schuldenabbau hat kurzfristig Priorität, wenngleich ergänzende Übernahmen und opportunistische Aktienrückkäufe weiterhin möglich bleiben.

Enerpac erweiterte zudem seine fünfjährige Kreditfazilität von 600 auf 850 Millionen US-Dollar. Die neue Struktur umfasst ein Laufzeitdarlehen über 300 Millionen US-Dollar, eine revolvierende Fazilität über 550 Millionen US-Dollar und eine Erhöhungsoption von bis zu 425 Millionen US-Dollar.

Prognose des Managements

Das Management erwartet für das Geschäftsjahr 2027 ein organisches Wachstum von 4 % bis 6 %, gestützt auf die anhaltende Stärke in der Region Amerika, die Dynamik in der Schwerlasttechnologie und eine Stabilisierung im Servicegeschäft. Europa bleibt die primäre regionale Unsicherheit.

Der Ausblick für das bereinigte EBITDA von 195 bis 205 Millionen US-Dollar beinhaltet zusätzliche Ausgaben für Propel sowie Investitionen, die erforderlich sind, um die Finanz-, IT- und sonstige Infrastruktur von SFE auf den Standard von Enerpac und börsennotierten Unternehmen zu bringen. Das Management gab an, dass der Mittelwert eine bereinigte EBITDA-Marge von rund 24 % impliziert.

Die reinen Integrationskosten für SFE werden auf insgesamt etwa 10 bis 14 Millionen US-Dollar geschätzt. Diese Kosten sind getrennt von wiederkehrenden Investitionen in Bereichen wie SEC-Berichterstattung und Rechtsberatung zu betrachten.

Die Prognose setzt voraus, dass es keine wesentlichen Änderungen bei Zöllen oder Regulierung gibt und die wirtschaftlichen Rahmenbedingungen weitgehend mit denen am Ende des vierten Quartals des Geschäftsjahres 2026 übereinstimmen.

Risiken und Beobachtungspunkte

• Der Nahostkonflikt schränkt weiterhin den Zugang zu bestimmten Märkten ein und sorgt für Unsicherheit im Servicegeschäft.
• Europa bleibt schwunglos; das Management sieht kurzfristig keinen klaren Katalysator für eine deutliche Verbesserung.
• Die Schwerlasttechnologie weist geringere Margen auf als der Portfoliodurchschnitt, was bei schnellerem Wachstum zu einem Produktmixdruck führt.
• Die Rentabilität im Geschäftsjahr 2027 wird durch Ausgaben für Propel, SFE-Integrationskosten und wiederkehrende Infrastrukturinvestitionen geprägt sein.
• Die Materialpreisinflation wird beobachtet. Das Management plant, Preiserhöhungen selektiv einzusetzen und Produktivitätsmaßnahmen zu nutzen, um Kostensteigerungen nach Möglichkeit auszugleichen.
• Der Verschuldungsgrad wird nach der SFE-Übernahme zunächst erhöht bleiben, wobei sich die Generierung des freien Cashflows im Jahresverlauf typischerweise auf die zweite Jahreshälfte konzentriert.

Wichtigste Punkte aus der Analysten-Fragerunde

Das Management erklärte, dass die starke Umsatzentwicklung im vierten Quartal des Geschäftsjahres keine wesentlichen Einmaleffekte enthielt. Es bezeichnete das Wachstum als breit abgestützt und hielt an der Prognose eines organischen Wachstums von 4 % bis 6 % für das Geschäftsjahr 2027 fest.

Hinsichtlich der Margen führte das Unternehmen den Rückgang gegenüber dem Vorjahr in erster Linie auf ein schnelleres Wachstum in der margenschwächeren Schwerlasttechnologie, höhere erfolgsabhängige Vergütungen und Investitionen in Propel zurück. Für das Geschäftsjahr 2027 plant das Management eine bessere Anlagenauslastung und eine weitere Optimierung der Produktionsstandorte.

Im Bereich Rechenzentren baut Enerpac seine Vertriebskapazitäten aus, wobei der Schwerpunkt auf Enterprise Sales und der Neukundengewinnung liegt. Laut Management könnten der Status als zugelassener Lieferant und die Fähigkeit, mobile Geräte schnell zu liefern, weitere Marktanteilsgewinne und Folgeaufträge unterstützen.

Bezüglich der Kapitalallokation betonte das Management die Schuldentilgung nach dem SFE-Abschluss, stellte jedoch klar, dass ergänzende Akquisitionen und opportunistische Aktienrückkäufe weiterhin in Betracht gezogen werden.

Vollständiges Transkript der Telefonkonferenz zu den Quartalszahlen

Vollständiges Transkript der Telefonkonferenz

Ausführungen des Managements

Operator

Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us, and welcome to the Enerpac Tool Group Fourth Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] I will now turn the call over to Christian Audi, Head of Investor Relations. Christian, please go ahead.

Christian Audi

Thank you, operator. Good morning, and thank you for joining us for Enerpac Tool Group's Earnings Call for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year Fiscal 2026. Joining me on the call today are our President and Chief Executive Officer, Paul Sternlieb; and our Chief Financial Officer, Darren Kozik. On today's call, we will reference non-GAAP measures. You can find a reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures in the press release issued yesterday and in the appendix of today's presentation. Yesterday, we also issued a separate press release announcing the completion of our acquisition of SFE Group.

Our comments will also include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks that could cause actual results to be materially different. Those risks include matters noted in our latest SEC filings. The slides referenced on today's call are available in the Investor Relations section of our website, which you can download and follow along. A recording of today's call will also be made available on our website. I will now turn over to Paul.

Paul Sternlieb

Thanks, Christian, and good morning, everyone. As you saw in our earnings release, we ended fiscal 2026 on an extremely strong note. Revenue in the fourth quarter exceeded our expectations with 10% organic growth in our Industrial Tool and Service or IT&S segment. That gain was driven by exceptional performance in the Americas. Moreover, we enjoyed strong sales gains in both IT&S' product and service businesses in the quarter. And while near-term uncertainty remains on the service side, given the fluid situation in the Middle East, we are encouraged by its progress in the fourth quarter as the actions we have taken to transition to a higher-margin service business while improving its cost structure are clearly beginning to show results.

In fact, the organic growth in the service business has improved sequentially every quarter in fiscal 2026 and turned sharply positive in Q4. Fourth quarter momentum drove record annual revenue of $652 million, our highest since the relaunch of Enerpac Tool Group in 2019, with full year organic growth of 4%. While full year margins remain impacted by several factors, which Darren will address, we delivered robust cash generation in fiscal 2026 with free cash flow up 30%, which positions us for better-than-anticipated balance sheet leverage following the acquisition of SFE. And as announced yesterday, we are very pleased to have completed the acquisition of SFE Group with the closing effective October 28.

We will share a lot more about SFE, the synergies we are targeting and the status of our integration progress at our upcoming Investor Day in New York next week. This morning, Darren will walk through our fiscal 2026 performance, provide details on our balance sheet and the SFE transaction and introduce our fiscal 2027 guidance. Then I will come back to give a preview of our next-generation profitable growth strategy, which we call Propel and highlight our successful innovation program. Darren?

Darren Kozik

Thanks, Paul. Turning to Slide 4. We finished the year with strong momentum. In product, growth was led by the Americas, supported by demand from data center build-out, power generation and defense and by the continued traction from the launch and commercialization of our newer products. In service, the actions we have taken are clearly beginning to show results, and the business grew nicely in the quarter, reversing the decline we saw over the first 9 months of the year. Cortland extended its run of double-digit growth as they continue to win new customers and projects.

As shown on Slide 5, the Americas led our growth in the fourth quarter with strong gains across standard products, heavy lifting technology and service. In addition to benefiting from a strengthening U.S. industrial sector and reshoring activity, we continue to make inroads into growing end markets, including infrastructure, data center build-out, power generation and defense. From a commercial standpoint, customer reception to our newer products continues to gain traction. We secured major contract wins, and we qualified for additional approved vendor list. Notably, to continue to position us well for serving the U.S. defense sector, in the fourth quarter, we received CMMC certification, which is the U.S. Defense's cybersecurity compliance program.

In EMEA, our standard product business grew in the fourth quarter. Our HLT business remained solid, but declined against a difficult comparison given a series of large deals in the prior year. The underlying trends are positive for this business. Finally, despite continued challenging conditions in the Middle East, service revenue in EMEA grew for the first time in fiscal 2026, helped by LNG maintenance and shutdown work. And in APAC, we saw strong product momentum in India, Korea and Australia, along with heavy lifting technology wins, including E-movers and gantries, while our service business was impacted by macro and geopolitical events. Please keep in mind that given the relatively small size of the business in APAC, quarterly results will fluctuate. Notably, all 3 regions saw strong double-digit order rate growth in the quarter.

Turning to Slide 6. For the full year fiscal 2026, our product business drove growth across IT&S, reflecting accelerating investments in Enerpac Commercial Excellence, or ECX and innovation. That more than offset the decline in service revenue, which was affected in part by our inability to access certain geographies in the Middle East due to the conflict as well as a softer North Sea market in the first half of the year. Combined with another standout year at Cortland, Enerpac delivered total organic growth of 4% for the year, with currency adding roughly 2 points to reported growth.

Turning to Slide 7. For the full year, the Americas drove our IT&S growth, up 10%, led by heavy lifting technology as the U.S. benefited from a strengthening industrial sector and reshoring activity. In EMEA, full year organic revenue declined 3%. Standard Products and Heavy Lifting Technology both grew. That growth was offset by service, which was pressured in the first half of the year by our U.K. business and the continued customer consolidation in the North Sea, which we have previously discussed. However, we are pleased to report that the major win secured in the second quarter continues to ramp well. In addition, the conflict in the Middle East continues to create uncertainty in our business.

Overall, slower economic growth across Europe weighed on results. That said, we have seen solid order flow in the EMEA region, with strength in the infrastructure market and large orders from the defense industry that will be beneficial in fiscal 2027. In Asia Pacific, organic revenue declined 1% as growth in heavy lifting technology was offset by lower service revenue. Looking ahead, we are encouraged by strong order rates and new product momentum in India, Korea and Australia. Stepping back, it's important to note that nearly half our business prior to the addition of SFE Group was generated from the Americas region, which we believe provides significant benefits over the next several years, particularly given the strength of the U.S. economy and industrial sector. Moreover, the skew to the Americas will be further bolstered by SFE Group, where roughly 74% of its revenue is generated in the Americas region.

Turning to Slide 8. Gross margin declined year-over-year, impacted by mix and higher bonus expense in the cost of goods sold. The increase in adjusted SG&A as a percent of sales was driven by investments in our new strategy and higher bonus expenses. We are proud of the fact that all permanent Enerpac employees are covered under our bonus plan, which rewarded the team for strong performance in fiscal 2026. As a result, our fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 22.6% compared with 26.5% in the prior year quarter, which was the highest margin quarter of fiscal 2025.

Turning to Slide 9. For the full year, gross margins were negatively impacted by mix, given the higher growth rate of our heavy lifting technology business and dilution from our service business. Overall, EBITDA margins were also impacted by our increased investments, including higher R&D and incentive compensation as well as investments in continued operational enhancements. As we move into fiscal 2027, we will drive opportunities to improve asset utilization and further optimize our manufacturing footprint.

Turning to Slide 10. Our asset-light model continues to generate strong cash. Fiscal 2026 free cash flow of $120 million expanded 30% year-over-year, driven by strong collections activity, inventory management and reduced cash taxes. Since fiscal 2022, we have nearly tripled free cash flow while keeping capital expenditures at roughly 2% of revenue in most years. And notably, we ended fiscal 2026 with net debt to adjusted EBITDA leverage of only 0.1x, which positioned us well for the subsequent completion of the SFE Group acquisition. Speaking of our financial flexibility, on October 16, we successfully renewed and expanded our credit facility with strong support from our banking group. All participating lenders increased their commitments, reflecting continued confidence in our business and financial profile.

As a result, we have increased the size of our 5-year credit facility from $600 million to $850 million. The new structure consists of a $300 million term loan and $550 million revolving credit facility, providing us with enhanced financial flexibility to support our strategic priorities and growth opportunities. The facility also includes an accordion option of up to $425 million, providing additional capacity for future M&A. Moreover, despite the significant increase in facility size, we were able to maintain the favorable pricing and key terms of our prior agreement, which we view as a strong outcome in the current financing environment.

Turning to Slide 11. As we highlighted when we announced the agreement to acquire SFE Group, the company provides a strong strategic fit and creates significant opportunities for value creation for Enerpac in addition to expanding our addressable market by approximately $1 billion. The approximately $472 million purchase price consisted of roughly $452 million in cash and about $20 million of equity awards granted in lieu of transaction bonuses. We funded the cash portion with cash on hand, our expanded term loan and borrowings under our new revolver. The purchase price represents a 10.6x SFE's trailing adjusted EBITDA or 9.5x, including the synergies we expect to realize within 3 years. And we expect the acquisition to be accretive to adjusted EPS in fiscal 2027. We continue to target $4 million to $6 million of synergies by year 3.

Thanks to our strong cash generation in fiscal 2026, we achieved a net leverage at closing of approximately 2.3x, down from our original estimate of 2.8x. With SFE Group's strong free cash flow profile, we expect to bring that down to approximately 2x by the end of the first year, well within our target range of 1.5 to 2.5x. That gives us the flexibility to continue our disciplined capital allocation strategy, including internal investments, bolt-on acquisitions and opportunistic share repurchases. Integration is already underway with our governance and cross-functional execution teams in place. We look forward to sharing more at our Investor Day next week. With that, our initial guidance for fiscal 2027 is shown on Slide 12. I say initial given that we just closed the SFE Group acquisition yesterday.

We are confident in our day 1 readiness, long-term synergy potential and the pre-close planning we have completed to leverage our combined human resources, IT, finance and legal infrastructure. Now that the deal has closed, we can begin working on the commercial side with customers and developing detailed plans to capture revenue synergies. As you evaluate guidance, keep in mind that fiscal 2027 will include approximately 10 months of SFE Group's performance. Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS guidance for fiscal 2027 exclude M&A transaction charges and integration-related items. Adjusted EPS also excludes the amortization of acquisition-related intangibles.

Starting with the top line. We expect fiscal 2027 revenue of $825 million to $845 million, with organic growth of 4% to 6%. We expect adjusted EBITDA of $195 million to $205 million, which includes incremental investments in our new strategy and support for SFE. For adjusted EPS, we are guiding to a range of $2 to $2.15. Our other modeling assumptions, including depreciation and amortization, interest expense, CapEx, adjusted tax rate and share count are shown on the slide. Our guidance assumes no substantial change to the current tariff or regulatory environment and economic trends similar to those as we exited the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. With that, let me turn it back to Paul.

Paul Sternlieb

Thanks, Darren. As previously announced, we will be hosting our Investor Day in New York next week. Among the many topics we plan to discuss, we will introduce our next-generation growth strategy, Propel. As shown on Slide 13, Propel is built on 3 pillars. First, we will grow in Attractive End Markets with Commercial Excellence. We plan to deploy next-generation Enerpac Commercial Excellence known as ECX, our commercial engine to accelerate growth across all products and regions, driving share gains through differentiated channels, digital reach and application-led selling. We also plan to accelerate the growth of SFE Group by leveraging Enerpac's global distribution and key account capabilities.

Second, we will differentiate through Product-First, Application-Led Innovation. As I will discuss in a minute, we have steadily increased our R&D investment and with it, accelerated the pipeline of mission-critical customer solutions. And third, we will expand through Operational Excellence Initiatives, including our PEP operating system, Inventory Management and Service Expansion into higher-margin applications. We look forward to sharing the full story along with our multiyear financial objectives on November 4. Of course, a critical part of our growth strategy is our commitment to innovation.

As you can see on Slide 14, we have significantly increased our investment in R&D, growing it at an 11% compound annual rate over the past 3 years. More importantly, we are seeing the benefits in the pace of new product introductions. In fiscal 2026, we launched 11 products, up from 5 the prior year. Heading into fiscal 2027, we have a lot to be excited about at Enerpac. Our product business continued to deliver broad-based strength across the Americas. Our service business is showing encouraging trends with sequential improvements every single quarter in fiscal 2026.

Our strong cash flow and balance sheet provide the flexibility to pursue our growth strategy. And the addition of SFE Group with its premium brand platform and market-leading products further strengthens our position as a premier industrial solutions company. With that, we'd be happy to take questions.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Your first question comes from the line of Will Gildea with CJS Securities.

Fragen und Antworten

Will Gildea

So congrats on the strong quarter and closing the deal. Can you just expand some more on the assumptions embedded in your guidance?

Paul Sternlieb

Yes, sure. Happy to, Will. Thanks for the question. So look, first, we are really excited about where we're headed. I think there's a lot to be really pleased about, particularly having finally closed the acquisition of SFE. That's a business with very premium products and margins. In fact, I was with the team at a major trade show, FABTECH in Las Vegas last week. It showed really well. They had a number of new products on display, very strong customer receptivity on those. That team has demonstrated the ability to drive very strong growth, both organically and inorganically.

And frankly, they have exposure to higher-growth end markets and attractive geographies with over 70% of their revenue in the Americas. So that will be, we think, a nice tailwind for us as well. Of course, very complementary position that expands our addressable market by about $1 billion, and it comes with a great strong management team who will stay on with Enerpac and is incentivized and motivated for the long term. So we're really, really excited and pleased that we were able to close on that. In terms of guidance, I'll turn that over to Darren, and he can talk a little bit about our thinking behind that.

Darren Kozik

Thanks, Paul. Will, as we look at 2027, I would say a couple of things. First, just as a reminder, we're only going to have 10 months of SFE, okay? So as you kind of work up your estimates and models, just remind yourself of that. But then as we look at the year, we see organic sales of roughly 4% to 6%, okay? And kind of behind that, we see continued strength in the Americas. That was very strong in Q4. We see that progressing into next year. In addition to that, our HLT business has been on a really strong growth front. So we expect to see that positive momentum.

And then service is stabilizing. That business did turn around in Q4. We're still looking for strong profitable work there. So we want to make sure we get the right work in service. I'd say the wildcard is still, as we talked about even this time last year is Europe, okay? There really is no impetus for a significant change there. So as we think about our business, roughly 40% in Europe, we still have our eyes there. That part of the portfolio is a little bit slower, although our product order growth rates were very strong in Q4, okay? So I'd say that's kind of the volume front. As we go down the P&L, we will have some leverage from that volume, but there's 2 places we need to invest back in.

Number one is SFE, okay? That team is very strong. They have great products, great operations. put their finance and IT infrastructure in some other places, we just need to invest back because they're not at public company standards or Enerpac standards. So those will be investments we make. And second is Propel. Paul started to allude to that. But next week, we have a lot of great things to show you kind of around grow, differentiate and expand and where we can invest back to get stronger growth in the future.

So that's the shape, the investments. And when we think about it at the midpoint, that will turn about a 24% EBITDA margin, which is very strong. $2.07 EPS, which is up double digits. And that includes SFE accretive in year 1, okay? So we're very happy about that as well. So that's the guide that's out there. The business is in a really good position.

Will Gildea

That's great color. And then just looking at the quarter, really, really solid organic growth. 24% organic sales growth in the Americas, it's very impressive. I mean, can you talk about the drivers of that? How much of that was price versus volume? And can you also kind of expand on the drivers behind lower margins in the quarter?

Paul Sternlieb

Yes, sure, Will. So I think, look, yes, we were extremely pleased with the growth overall in the quarter and particularly in the Americas, very robust. Certainly, clearly, the industrial sector in the U.S. is very robust, improving, and I would say, performing better than really any other significant country or region in which we operate. That's obviously a plus for Enerpac where nearly half of our revenue comes from the Americas region. And as we talked about with the addition of SFE, over 70% of their revenue generated in the Americas. So on a pro forma basis, we'll be in the mid-50s, I think, on a revenue basis, skewed to the Americas. So I think it's really driven by the strength of the U.S. industrial sector.

Clearly, we see a lot of growth tailwinds, particularly in end markets like infrastructure, data center build-out, power generation and the defense sector as well. I think we also see very nice continued tailwinds from reshoring activities here in the U.S. market. And we think that those are not only robust but sustainable over the mid and potentially long term. So we're quite bullish about that. I think outside the Americas, as Darren talked about, obviously, slower growth, but we did see very solid order flow in EMEA, particularly with strength in infrastructure and large defense orders, and we think that will be beneficial here in fiscal '27 as well. So overall, yes, I think, again, we were quite pleased with the performance in the quarter and particularly with the growth rates that we saw here in the Americas region.

Darren Kozik

Yes. And Will, to kind of talk about the fourth quarter margin, as a reminder, we were comparing to our highest margin quarter of last year at 26.5%. So we did have a tough comp there. But as you unpack some of that change year-over-year, probably in the first position here was there's some mix dynamics there. We talked a lot about HLT growth in the Americas. And as a reminder, HLT margin tends to be a little bit lower than the portfolio average because it's a capital good, that will run in the mid-40s. So that puts a little bit of pressure overall.

Second, with that strong quarter from an organic growth rate as well as free cash flow generation, we did have to increase for some incentive comp, okay, which we're happy to reward our people for that strong performance, but that put a little bit of pressure in the quarter. But then third, we invested in Propel, okay? In the second half of the year, we really started to invest behind that strategy because we see a strong market, particularly in the U.S. So we want to get ahead and get those investments in to drive growth in 2027. So those are the large drivers. We are excited about Propel. We're excited to invest behind that because we think that will be a catalyst for growth, and we thought that was a wise move.

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. And I would just add a color on that, which is we'll talk a lot more next week at Investor Day about Propel. But to Darren's point, the reality is, I mean, we've been executing on that internally now for many months. Obviously, we have a public unveiling effectively next week, but the team has been hard at work executing on that growth strategy. And frankly, as Darren said, we've been investing behind that for a while now.

Will Gildea

Great. And then just one more for me. Leverage is going to be a half turn lower after the close of this deal than previously expected. So back in your target range? How are you thinking about cash generation and the new credit facility?

Darren Kozik

Sure, Will. So we were pleased to close the credit facility. We had great support from our banks. As we sit here today, probably around 2.3x levered. And I would say, and just as a reminder, free cash flow generation for us is really strong in the second half of the year. So a lot of that leverage will come down in Q3 and Q4, just given the first half of the year for us has a lot of tax payments, bonus payments, things of that nature. So that will be the kind of profile of leverage throughout the year. As we look at that, given where we sit today and with the credit facility, obviously, debt paydown is top of mind.

We haven't had this amount of leverage in a while, so that will be a focus of ours. But that's not to say we won't look at opportunistic share repurchase or even bolt-on M&A. We think we've got a platform now and a profile for a company that's in a really good spot that we can add on other industrial tools and solutions players. So I think we tend to look at it, Will, as everything is on the table, but we will focus to get that leverage down, and that's our commitment.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Ross Sparenblek with William Blair.

Ross Sparenblek

I mean really good quarter there on the top line. It looks like the highest in company history since you guys got here. Anything onetime to call out? I mean it feels like you're maybe abundance of caution going into next year or if there was anything with the data centers as a big HLT cell or something of that nature that would give you pause for a potential deceleration in '27?

Darren Kozik

Yes, Ross, thanks for the question. Really nothing in terms of any meaningful one-offs to note in the quarter. It was just overall a very strong robust performance by the team. Yes, and I think we're pleased with the progress we've been making there. I think it was broad-based. I mean we talked about a number of end markets where we're seeing really nice tailwinds and kind of favorable dynamics there. And we expect that to continue here into fiscal '27. I think on the organic growth, I mean, obviously, finishing the full year at around 4% organic growth, we feel like the guide of 4% to 6% here for fiscal '27 makes sense, and we'll continue to evaluate as we progress throughout the year. But just given the market dynamics and the execution of the team, we feel that's appropriate. So yes, I think overall, that's where we sit today.

Ross Sparenblek

Okay. That's helpful. On the data center and power side, can you just remind us of kind of what the sales cycle looks like? Is it a similar dynamic with other large projects where kind of a onetime purchase, so you see more of a recurring cycle there? -- equipment going on job sites.

Paul Sternlieb

Right. Yes. No, thanks for the question, Ross. It is pretty interesting. I'd say specifically on data center. So our exposure is less so on the data centers themselves or the hyperscalers. It's sort of one step back. So we are generally selling to folks that are manufacturing equipment that goes into a data center like gensets or other power equipment, et cetera. And then we're providing equipment and support for either their own manufacturing facilities as they're making that equipment, need to move it around in their plants or ultimately to transport it or to install it into a data center. Our equipment doesn't typically sit permanently in the data center.

What I would say is we are seeing a number of repeat or recurring orders in that space. Most of the work that we see tends to revolve around our smaller HLT gantries, which are really a very nice substitute for more permanent overhead crane solutions. So as you see other industrial manufacturers building out new capacity, whether it's expansion or even new manufacturing facilities, they don't necessarily want to make these large onetime investments in overhead cranes, which are fixed in a facility and they can't easily move. It also are very expensive and also have very significant lead time. So our smaller gantries are really an exceptional substitute that allow them to get that with very short lead times and its mobile equipment.

So plays very well there. E-movers, another one of our HLT products, also is supporting those customers, particularly in those applications. And we have, as I said, seen a number of repeat orders. I would say the cycle time or the lead time for those is generally shorter than what we typically see in our HLT business. Probably most important for these customers is availability. I would say price is probably a much less critical element for them, frankly. So we've been making investments behind inventory and operational improvements to be able to support very quickly.

Ross Sparenblek

Okay. That's helpful. Do you get the sense then that you're kind of expanding that TAM customer by customer? -- when you think like just competitive landscape, I maybe going out there kind of big game hunting to make sure that your brand is well -- people know about it and they know that you have the ability to deliver.

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. It's a great question. Ross, we will talk more specifically about this on our Investor Day next week. Phil Jefferson, our Chief Commercial Officer, will speak exactly to that. But suffice it to say, we have been and we are continuing to make additional investments in more resources behind commercial sellers specifically focused on the data center market, including a focus on enterprise selling as well. So we already have some very strong established customer relationships, but we have more active hunting work underway with more resources and feet on the street dedicated to that activity.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Steve Silver with Argus Research.

Steven Silver

My congratulations on the closing of the acquisition as well. So you guys mentioned major contract wins in the data center space as well as approved vendor list. So I was wondering if you could provide a little more color on that and really what the implications might be for the business moving forward?

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. Look, I think those wins that we talked about, they really reflect the commercial traction that we're building, particularly in the Americas. And also, I'd say the disciplined sales process that we have built, we call ECX, Enerpac commercial excellence. I think we're making particular gains in infrastructure, as we talked about data center build-out, power gen, defense industries. I do think we are taking share. We see good evidence of that. And as I said, we're continuing to invest and accelerate investments, particularly commercially as well as operationally and from an inventory selective perspective behind that.

And some of these approved vendor list also, I think, position us well into the future because, again, we become the easy button, frankly, for these customers and the one-stop shop. And if they build increasing confidence behind our capability to deliver for them on short notice with very high-quality product that meets their needs, and frankly, is a great substitute for what otherwise would be expensive and long lead time investments for them. It's really a no-brainer for those sort of customers.

Steven Silver

Great. And so a key component of the Propel strategy talking about is product innovation. And I know you guys have been talking about this for quite some time in terms of new products. Yet you've done this pretty much with a modest R&D expense on an absolute basis. You mentioned the 10% CAGR in R&D growth, but still a pretty low number on an absolute basis. I'm just curious as to whether that will likely be accelerated either on an absolute basis or as a percentage of sales moving forward.

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. We've been extremely pleased, Steve, with the progress that our innovation team has made over the last several years. As you may recall, we previously talked about effectively, it was a reboot strategy from 4 or 5 years ago. We've come a long way in terms of building out the process, the capability the team behind that. Obviously, the road map now executing in terms of launches and commercialization. So I think we've made really exceptional progress, kudos to our team on that and launching 11 products here in fiscal '26. And frankly, a similar target or if not better here in fiscal '27.

We will talk a lot more specifically about innovation at our Investor Day next week. Mart Hinnen, who heads up our innovation function and our HLT business globally, will spend quite a bit of time going into really significant detail behind innovation, how we run it, what the future looks like. We have been and we will continue to increase our level of investment in R&D here. We think that we are a clear technology leader in our space, and we want to continue to be front and center in the industry in that respect. The only other comment I'd make in terms of absolute levels of investment -- it's hard to compare, but I think at the end of the day, just bear in mind, the bulk, if not really the vast majority of our innovation spend is on our product business.

So when you look as a percent of revenue, you really have to think about percent -- the denominator effectively being our IT&S product business overall. So I think we'll continue to invest behind product innovation, but frankly, also supporting areas like our field service and our applications expertise as well, which I think is a key differentiator and maybe the unsung hero of our business in many respects.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Ross Sparenblek with William Blair.

Ross Sparenblek

Just a couple on the margins. Can you maybe help us pinpoint what this integration and growth investment cost is for '27. We have the SFE targets. It's something like around $20 million. I don't know if that's all in FY '27, and it seems like there's maybe some other moving parts there, too. You guys didn't say anything about material inflation. I know others are having that issue. I just wanted to verify that that's not an issue for you guys as well.

Darren Kozik

Yes, Ross, let me take a couple of pieces there. I would say, first, pure integration costs, we think that is in the ballpark of $10 million to $14 million. I would say that's to put the businesses together to get the ERPs to work, those types of dynamics, okay? Outside of that, there is some core investment we need to make in SFE to stand that up that will be recurring costs in the business. So really, there's investments of 2 types there. one, just to get it up and running, which we put out at $10 million to $14 million; and two, some core investments in things call the SEC reporting or legal resources that we need on a recurring basis. So there's kind of a combination of both there from an integration perspective.

Second, on material inflation, it's -- we read the news too. We see some impacts of it, but it's -- I would say it's not as exorbitant as some may be led to believe. Obviously, we have our eyes on the ball there. And obviously, we have a sourcing team that is driving all the cost that we can. But as we enter '27, it feels like an environment similar to '26 that we're prepared for.

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. And I think as always, Ross, from an inflation standpoint, our goal is to at least offset that through a combination of pricing where appropriate and productivity actions here in the business. We continue to firmly believe we can do that, if not over recover a little bit to maintain margin profile. As you know, from a pricing standpoint, we typically take 1 to 2 price increases a year. That's never peanut butter. We evaluate that by geography, by product line, even at SKU level, but we'll continue to evaluate that here in fiscal '27.

Ross Sparenblek

Okay. I mean it's hard to tell what the core incrementals should be as our starting point for '27. Can you just give us a sense of what the organic should be before we start layering in some of these costs?

Paul Sternlieb

Yes. I think on the incrementals, what I would say is we're going to share more specifics around that, not to sound like a broken record, but we will specifically address incremental and actually decrementals should those occur next week at our Investor Day. So stay tuned. But we'll talk specifically next week around sort of the fixed versus variable cost structure of the business and why that gives us confidence in our ability to deliver on the numbers that we'll share for the incremental and decrementals.

Darren Kozik

Yes. And Ross, I would just add that we've been on a journey here. Free cash flow has tripled almost over the last couple of years here. We've done the acquisition. We feel the time is right in a good market to invest back in the business and get growth above market, and that's what we're here to do.

Ross Sparenblek

I never had a doubt on the free cash flow. You guys -- you're on a tight ship over there. And then just one more here just on the -- I believe that we had SFE accretion around $0.25 for year 1. So 10 months of that, about $0.20 is kind of the starting point when we think about the organic EPS. Just trying to back parts.

Darren Kozik

That's in the range, Ross. I think you got to kind of look at that business in a couple of components. One, kind of take that down to 10 months; two, look at the current interest rate environment; and then three, the incremental investments we need to make back in that business. So that might get you to something that's a little bit less than that in the grand scheme of things.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] There are no further questions at this time. I will now turn the call back to Paul Sternlieb, CEO, for closing remarks.

Paul Sternlieb

Okay. Well, we hope that you'll join us for Investor Day being held next week on Wednesday, November 4 at the New York Stock Exchange. In addition to Darren and myself, we'll be joined by other members of Enerpac's leadership team, providing a comprehensive overview of our strategic vision and an in-depth review of our products, capital allocation strategy and financial objectives. Attendees will also be able to see our products close up through live demonstrations and meet the management team at a lunch in following the presentations.

If you are unable to attend in person, the presentations will be webcast and accessible on the Investor Relations section of our website. In addition, we will be participating in the Baird Global Industrial Conference in Chicago the following week on Tuesday, November 10. We hope to see you there. And I'd be remiss if I didn't end with congratulations to the Milwaukee Brewers for winning the World Series, well deserved. With that, thanks again for joining us, and have a great day.

Operator

This concludes today's call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.