Nordson Fiscal Q3 2026 Earnings: Advanced Technology Drives 10% Sales Growth

Nordson (Nasdaq: NDSN) reported fiscal Q3 2026 revenue of $817.7 million, up 10.3% from $741.5 million a year earlier, while diluted EPS rose 23% to $2.73 from $2.22. Adjusted EPS increased 19% to $3.25, with Advanced Technology Solutions providing most of the company’s incremental EBITDA and backlog rising 35% year over year.

Core Earnings Data

Organic sales increased 11.7% as all three operating segments grew. The net effect of acquisitions and divestitures reduced reported growth by 1.2 percentage points, while currency translation was a 0.2-point headwind.

Gross margin expanded by 70 basis points, and operating profit grew faster than revenue. The prior-year quarter included $12.2 million of divestiture-related charges, while the current quarter included a $14.9 million non-cash loss on a minority investment.

Adjusted EPS, EBITDA, and free cash flow are non-GAAP measures. Adjusted EPS excludes the minority-investment loss and acquisition-related amortization and costs, among other items.

Business and Segment Performance

Advanced Technology Solutions was the main growth engine, supported by electronics dispensing and test-and-inspection product lines. Industrial Precision Solutions and Medical and Fluid Solutions also grew, although their reported and organic growth rates diverged because of acquisition and divestiture effects.

Industrial Precision Solutions benefited from packaging, industrial coatings, polymer processing, and nonwovens demand. Its EBITDA was essentially unchanged despite higher sales, reducing the segment margin by two percentage points.

Medical and Fluid Solutions’ organic growth was driven by engineered fluid solutions and medical products, but the prior divestiture of the contract manufacturing business reduced reported growth by 5.6 percentage points.

Geographically, Asia Pacific led with 22.2% reported growth and 24.1% organic growth. Americas revenue increased 5.4%, while Europe grew 3.1%.

Profitability, Cash Flow, and Balance Sheet

Nordson’s gross margin increased to 55.5%, but total EBITDA margin remained at 32%. Selling and administrative expenses rose 11.7% to $230.6 million, slightly faster than revenue, while corporate expenses increased to $21.4 million from $16.3 million.

Quarterly free cash flow reached $236.8 million, but conversion declined to 144% from 180% a year earlier. For the first nine months of fiscal 2026, operating cash flow increased to $570.5 million from $516.3 million, and free cash flow rose to $530.2 million from $467.3 million.

Cash stood at $113.4 million on July 31, 2026. Short- and long-term debt totaled approximately $1.73 billion, down from about $2.00 billion at the end of fiscal 2025. During the first nine months, Nordson made $258.0 million of net debt repayments, repurchased $158.8 million of shares, and paid $137.4 million in dividends.

Advanced Technology Supplied Nearly All of the EBITDA Increase

Advanced Technology Solutions generated approximately $24.1 million of additional segment EBITDA year over year, nearly matching the entire company’s $24.0 million EBITDA increase. Medical and Fluid Solutions added about $5.1 million, but this was largely offset by a similar increase in corporate expenses, while Industrial Precision Solutions EBITDA was flat.

This mix explains why companywide EBITDA grew in line with revenue and the total margin remained at 32%, despite the six-point margin expansion in Advanced Technology Solutions. Continued electronics demand is therefore important not only for revenue growth but also for sustaining the current profit mix.

Fiscal 2026 Guidance

Management raised its full-year outlook based on order-entry momentum and a backlog that was 35% above the prior-year level. The release did not provide the previous numerical ranges, so the size of the increase cannot be quantified.

The revenue range would put Nordson above $3 billion in annual sales. Management expects the sales momentum recorded during the first nine months to continue through the fourth quarter.

Recent Insider Transactions

The supplied insider data shows 74,940 shares purchased across 10 transactions and 77,638 shares sold across six transactions during the latest six-month period. That produced net selling of 2,698 shares, equivalent to 0.10% of the reported 3.12 million total insider shares held; the figures alone do not indicate insiders’ views on the company’s outlook.

The latest 10 reported transactions include director stock grants, open-market sales, and a derivative-security exercise. Transaction values are shown as reported.

Risks Investors Need to Watch

• Growth was concentrated in Advanced Technology Solutions. The segment supplied nearly all of the company’s incremental EBITDA, increasing Nordson’s sensitivity to demand for electronics dispensing and test-and-inspection products.
• Industrial Precision Solutions margin declined. Its EBITDA margin fell to 35% from 37% even as sales increased, indicating that revenue growth did not translate into higher segment EBITDA this quarter.
• Backlog must convert into fourth-quarter revenue. The raised guidance relies on continued order-entry and backlog momentum, making execution against the 35% backlog increase an important measure to monitor.
• Cash conversion was below the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow increased, but conversion declined to 144% from 180%, limiting the improvement relative to the company’s earnings growth.
• Non-cash investment items can affect GAAP results. The quarter included a $14.9 million loss on a minority investment, creating a wider difference between GAAP and adjusted earnings.

Summary

Nordson’s fiscal third quarter combined double-digit organic sales growth, higher GAAP and adjusted EPS, and a stronger full-year outlook. Advanced Technology Solutions was the central driver, while Industrial Precision Solutions’ lower margin and the decline in free-cash-flow conversion provide counterpoints to the headline growth. The next quarter will test whether the larger backlog converts into revenue while Nordson preserves its companywide EBITDA margin.