UFP Technologies (UFPT) 2026年第三季法說會：有機成長 11.1% 與利潤率擴張

重點摘要

• 2026 年第三季營收年增 11.6% 至 1.724 億美元，其中包括 11.1% 的有機成長。
• 毛利率從 27.7% 提升至 29.4%，調整後營業利益成長 14.5%，調整後營業利益率達 17.5%。
• 調整後稀釋每股盈餘 (EPS) 為 2.88 美元。營運現金流總計約 3,850 萬美元，季末槓桿比率遠低於 1 倍。
• 醫療科技 (MedTech) 營收在該季成長 12.5%，主要受病床與搬運系統、心血管、感染控制及骨科應用等領域雙位數成長的支撐。
• 管理層對其長期成長框架維持信心，即有機成長 6%–9%、計入併購後的總成長為 12%–18%。管理層預期第四季將維持季節性疲軟。
• UFP Technologies 正投資於 DAS Medical 產能、塑膠業務能力及併購，而 AJR 客戶認證的延遲則持續拖慢產品轉移至多明尼加的進度。

關鍵財務數據

業務與營運表現

醫療科技業務第三季營收成長 12.5%，產品組合整體需求廣泛。年初至今醫療科技業務成長率為 11.7%，與 UFP Technologies 前五大醫療科技客戶的總體成長率相當。

該公司報告在病床與搬運系統、心血管、感染控制及骨科應用等領域均實現雙位數成長。機器人手術領域則符合管理層先前對 2026 年持平至微幅下滑的預期。

UFP Technologies 持續在多明尼加擴大新專案規模，並改善既有業務的獲利率。AJR 在美國與多明尼加均取得顯著的年成長進展，但受限於客戶認證要求，勞力密集型產品的轉移進度仍落後於時程。

在 DAS Medical 方面，為因應預期的雙位數成長，該公司正提前擴增產能與人員。管理層指出，長期客戶合約、2026 年推出專案帶來的全年貢獻，以及新興機器人手術平台，均是 2027 年及以後的潛在成長動能。

UFP Technologies 於 8 月收購了 CI Medical。該公司專注於射出成型與押出塑膠零組件的印刷，能與其持續擴大的塑膠業務形成互補。這項收購與 2025 年對 TPI 的投資相輔相成，進一步拓展了 UFP Technologies 在射出成型與醫療器材印刷方面的能力。

管理層展望

管理層重申其長期成長框架，即有機成長 6%–9%、包含併購在內的總成長為 12%–18%。該公司不提供季度或年度財務指引。

管理層預期第四季將維持季節性疲軟，部分原因在於多明尼加營運規模擴大，使假期停工帶來的影響增加。

在毛利率方面，管理層對 28%–31% 的區間維持信心，並表示業務毛利率正穩定在 29% 左右。預計 2027 年將展開更多 AJR 轉移作業，具體時程將取決於客戶優先考量與認證進度。

隨著近期投資逐步發揮效益，推銷及一般管理費用 (SG&A) 的增幅預計將趨於平緩。一次性的重複執行長費用將會消除，但較高的資安支出仍將持續。第三季 SG&A 包括約 190 萬美元的額外薪資與福利，以及約 80 萬美元的非現金股權激勵費用。

該公司亦正致力於擴大其信貸額度以支持規模更大的併購。管理層表示，目前的信貸額度允許借貸上限為 EBITDA 的 3.25 倍，並打算在更大規模的基礎上維持現有的嚴謹併購策略。

風險與關注焦點

• AJR 產品轉移至多明尼加的進度落後，且仍取決於客戶認證。
• 第四季歷來表現較為疲軟，多明尼加的假期停工進一步加劇了季節性壓力。
• 儘管管理層對新平台的長期前景持樂觀態度，但預計 2026 全年機器人手術業務仍將持平至下滑。
• 由於勞力密集型生產仍位於成本較高的據點，AJR 持續對毛利構成逆風。
• 近期在管理層、資安、產能與技術能力上的投資，使得 SG&A 費用在預期成長實現前先行增加。

分析師問答重點

管理層將毛利率改善歸因於產品組合出貨量的增加與成本降低，儘管尚未完全體現 AJR 轉移的全部效益。

在資本配置方面，該公司的輕資產模式使其能夠在為有機成長提供資金後，優先推動併購。管理層表示併購儲備項目活躍，且 UFP Technologies 目前已有能力尋求規模更大、範圍更廣的標的。

相較於薄膜、泡棉與織物，塑膠、押出成型及接著劑仍是 UFP Technologies 規模較小的領域。管理層正評估透過有機投資與併購來強化這些能力，特別是在射出成型領域。

管理層表示，客戶在產品開發、新產品推出或下單模式方面的行為並無重大改變。公司將持續調整資源配置，以符合客戶對改善病患療效與降低成本的需求。

財報電話會議完整逐字稿

完整財報電話會議逐字稿

管理層陳述

Operator

Good day, and welcome to UFP Technologies' Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] Please note that this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Ron Lataille, Senior Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.

Ronald Lataille

Thank you, operator. Good morning, and thank you for joining us on our 2026 third quarter earnings conference call. With me on today's call is our CEO, Mitch Rock. Today, we will make some forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the accuracy of which is subject to risks and uncertainties.

Wherever possible, we will try to identify those forward-looking statements by using words such as believe, expect, anticipate, pursue, forecast and similar expressions. Our forward-looking statements are based on our estimates and assumptions as of today and should not be relied upon as representing our estimates or views on any subsequent date. Please refer to the cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information and the risk factors in our most recent 10-K and 10-Qs, including disclosure of the factors that could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied.

During this call, we will discuss non-GAAP financial measures, which include organic sales growth, adjusted gross margin, adjusted operating income, adjusted SG&A, adjusted EPS and EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures discussed in this call is contained in the associated press release and is available in the Investor Relations section of our website. I'll now turn the call over to Mitch.

Mitchell Rock

Thank you, Ron. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. Our third quarter reflects solid execution across UFP and steady progress on our long-term growth strategy. Third quarter sales were $172.4 million, up 11.6%. Organic growth was 11.1%. Gross margin increased to 29.4%, adjusted operating income grew 14.5%, and adjusted earnings per share increased to $2.88. Year-to-date, sales are up 10.3%, to $500.6 million. MedTech grew 11.7%, and our top 5 MedTech customers collectively also grew 11.7%. What stands out to me is how broad the growth is. MedTech sales were up 12.5%, in the quarter with demand across the portfolio. One of the real strengths of UFP is that our growth does not depend on any single customer, program or end market. We were proud to be recognized by one of our top 5 customers with a supplier award for creating value through innovation and cost savings.

That's exactly what we're aiming for, line up with where our customers are going long term and help them scale while taking costs out. On operations, we are continuing to make progress. We are scaling new programs in the Dominican Republic. Margins are improving in our legacy UFP operations. And at AJR, we have made significant year-over-year progress, both in the U.S. and in the Dominican Republic. That said, we're behind schedule moving AJR activity to the Dominican Republic. We remain committed to finishing those transfers, scaling up operations and delivering the savings we anticipate. At the same time, we're investing ahead of growth in other parts of the business.

At DAS Medical, we are adding capacity ahead of anticipated double-digit growth, along with the people and capabilities to support it. And we are broadening what we can do. In August, we acquired CI Medical, a niche medical device printing business that prints on injection molded and extruded plastic components. CI Medical serves device development and low-volume, high-mix applications. It's a strong fit with our growing plastics business. We also see an opportunity to expand medical injection molding. Our 2025 investment in TPI gave us a strong initial position in this large and established market.

And CI Medical adds the printing capability that goes along with injection molded and extruded components. Together, they expand what we can offer our customers and add value across the UFP platform. Beyond these investments, acquisitions have always been a key part of our growth strategy, and we're positioning UFP to do more. We are making progress on several opportunities. And as UFP has grown, so has the size and range of the businesses we can take on. We remain disciplined on strategic fit and valuation. In parallel, we're working to expand our credit facility, which gives us room to invest in high-quality businesses that meet our criteria.

Between a strong, conservative balance sheet, a bigger team and our decentralized operating model, we believe we can bring on larger businesses and keep investing in organic growth. As we look to 2027, I'm optimistic. We have strong customer relationships, expanding capabilities, new capacity coming online, meaningful organic growth opportunities and an active acquisition pipeline. We also have areas where execution needs to improve, and we remain focused on those.

Our strategy remains consistent: grow with our customers, invest in our people and capabilities, improve our operations, make disciplined acquisitions and create long-term value for our shareholders. None of this happens without our thousands of team members around the world. I want to thank them for their commitment to our customers, to each other and to getting better every day. Thank you. And with that, I'll turn it over to Ron.

Ronald Lataille

Thank you, Mitch. With regard to operating results, as Mitch mentioned, overall sales were up 11.6%, fueled by strength in the patient beds and handling, cardiovascular, infection control and orthopedic submarkets. Organic sales growth for the quarter was strong at 11.1% as our launch programs accelerate, and we continue to improve efficiencies at AJR. Gross profit as a percentage of sales or gross margin increased to 29.4%, from 27.7% last year.

This improvement was despite continued margin headwind at AJR as high labor products scheduled to be transferred to the Dominican Republic continues to be contingent on customer qualification. SG&A expenses for our third quarter of 2026 increased by $4.1 million to $23.2 million. This is largely due to approximately $1.9 million in wages and benefits for back-office investments, increased members of our senior management team designed to accelerate growth and variable compensation as well as approximately $800,000 in noncash equity compensation caused partially by duplicate CEO equity costs.

On a sequential basis, SG&A remained relatively similar. Adjusted operating margin for the third quarter was 17.5% and adjusted earnings per diluted share outstanding was $2.88, up significantly from last year. We generated approximately $38.5 million in cash from operations during our third quarter. Capital expenditures were $3.9 million during our third quarter, and we ended with a leverage ratio of well under 1x. With that, I now turn it back to the operator for questions.

Operator

[Operator Instructions]

Our first question comes from the line of Justin Ages with CJS Securities.

Justin, will you please proceed with your question?

分析師問答

Justin Ages

Yes.

So you mentioned strength in patient beds and a couple of areas. Can you give us a sense on where robotic surgery growth was?

Mitchell Rock

Yes. So as Ron mentioned, we had broad growth in those 4 subsegments, actually double-digit growth. And as we have indicated throughout the year that 2026 is a flat to down year in robotic surgery. So the results were consistent with that.

Justin Ages

That's helpful. And then really strong free cash flow generation. And I know you talked about an active M&A pipeline. Can you kind of let us know about capital allocation priorities where you're looking at acquisitions or maybe instituting buybacks or anything like that?

Ronald Lataille

I would say broadly, we're focused on allocating capital to support organic growth. And as you know, we have a capital-light model. So that pivots our focus to acquisitions. We've been clear that we have an active pipeline, and we're positioning the business to do more.

Operator

Next question comes from the line of Brett Fishbin with KeyBanc.

Brett Fishbin

I wanted to just ask on AJR. I know you guys are progressing in moving some of the product lines offshore, not quite done. So I was just curious if you can give any updates on how it went during the quarter? And then any updated thoughts on the time line to get the final programs moved offshore and whether that could take place this year or if that's more of a 2027 item?

Mitchell Rock

Brett, thanks for the question. What we would say broadly is we're really aligning our resources with our customers' priorities and our customers' priorities over time can shift. I mean this is a growing business with some moving parts that has a complex transfer. The overall business is contributing, so we're making it better. And then we are looking forward to '27 to complete additional transfer activity. So that's how I would think about it.

Brett Fishbin

All right. Perfect. Perfect. And then I know you guys have the longer-term guidance framework, which is 12% to 18% growth, generally 50% organic, which gets to 6% to 9%. You've been above that range in both 2Q and 3Q with double-digit growth. Maybe just any directional comments on what you kind of anticipate for 4Q and into 2027, if 6% to 9% is still kind of the right general baseline range to be thinking about?

Mitchell Rock

Yes. I mean, as you know, we don't give quarterly or annual guidance. I think we're comfortable with the 6% to 9%. Obviously, we've had 2 good quarters. Q4 is traditionally softer -- and as we've moved more activity to the DR, I expect that to continue to be true because we have more holiday shutdowns down there. So I think we're comfortable with the organic growth range and then the overall 12% to 18% with regard to organic and inorganic growth combined.

Brett Fishbin

Perfect. And last question for me. You guys noted in the press release and then again on the call that some of the additional capacity you're adding to DAS Medical could support double-digit growth for that business next year. So just interested in any more color around your early assumptions here and kind of what gives you confidence and visibility into that range?

Mitchell Rock

Yes, great question. So this has been a 5-year journey of investing in this business. In Q1, we signed an extension to support growth. So we have 3 things going on. We have -- we have the growth that we've invested in as far as supporting that long-term agreement. Two, we'll get the full year benefit of the things that we've launched this year, the programs we've launched this year.

So that -- and then lastly, more broadly, which is exciting is that there are robotic surgical platforms that are gaining market adoption that have been, what I would say, subscale so far, and we'll see some meaningful contribution as we move into '27 and beyond. So it's a great story.

Operator

Our next question comes from the line of Andrew Cooper with Raymond James.

Andrew Cooper

Maybe first, just on margins and maybe how it plays into the AJR transition. I mean you've continued to drive margins higher despite the, let's just say, lack of capture of the upside that you expect when those transitions do happen or the final transfers happen. So what's kind of enabled you to continue pushing higher from that perspective on the gross margin side? And how should we expect that to trend in '27 when those transfers do finalize?

Mitchell Rock

Andrew, great question. What I would think broadly about the portfolio is I would think we're focused on revenue growth and operating margin. There are puts and takes on the gross margin. So I think we're excited that we've made progress there. And I think it's -- the story is broad across the portfolio, a combination of volume and the team continue to take costs out. So I think we're comfortable in the -- in our range of 28% to 31%, and I think we're settling in at that 29%. So I think we're comfortable thinking about that way.

Andrew Cooper

Okay. Helpful. And then maybe one on kind of some of the M&A commentary and obviously talking about upsizing some of the capacity there. I think it's interesting you called out TPI as well. Is injection molding an area where you think you can add meaningfully from maybe an organic investment perspective? Is that one of the focus areas when we think about M&A? And just how do we think about the comment in the press release around broadening injection molding capabilities?

Mitchell Rock

Yes. I think if you look at our platform from a capability perspective, we have scale in films, foams, fabrics, and we're subscale in some other interesting areas like plastics or extrusion or adhesives. And it's probably the largest space in kind of single-use CDMOs. So it's -- we have seen a lot of assets in that space, and we continue to be thoughtful about how to add it to the portfolio, both from an organic perspective and from an acquisition perspective.

Andrew Cooper

Okay. Helpful. And then maybe just one big picture one. It feels like there's a lot going on in MedTech world in your customer base overall. Has there been any change in tone or aggressiveness around kind of how they're thinking about development work and new product rollouts and ordering patterns, et cetera, as you think about the last, call it, couple of months of conversations you've had with some of these key accounts?

Mitchell Rock

Nothing really sticks out to me. I mean I think ultimately, this -- the macro trends in the space of trying to develop widgets that deliver a better patient outcome and ultimately drive costs out are consistent. So I think we will continue to map our resources to those customer needs.

Operator

Our next question comes from the line of Luke Fingerson with Lake Street.

Luke Fingerson

Mitch, Ron.

First question for you guys. SG&A is up about 20% year-over-year. Should we expect this to keep stepping up into 2027? Or how should we think about that going forward?

Mitchell Rock

Good question. A few points there. There is onetime duplicate CEO costs that will roll off. We do have additional cybersecurity costs that will be permanent. And then we've really invested ahead of growth in terms of the team. And so we suspect that, that will moderate as we grow into those investments by both growing the business organically and adding some businesses to the platform via acquisition.

Luke Fingerson

Got it. And then on capital allocation, you expanded the credit facility and mentioned onboarding larger businesses. How much leverage are you guys willing to run on a larger deal? And then how are you guys thinking about structure when it comes to deal size?

Mitchell Rock

I think we're going to maintain the playbook. We're going to look at continuing to -- our current credit facility is we can borrow at 3.25x EBITDA. And we're just thinking about it in the same way just at a larger scale given the size of the enterprise now.

Operator

That was the last question for today. I now turn the conference back to Mitchell Rock for any closing remarks. Thank you, and over to you, Mitch.

Mitchell Rock

Thank you. Well, thanks, everyone. I just want to thank our customers and our team members. Without those 2 constituents, we wouldn't have a great business. We're super excited about going into 2027, and we appreciate all the support from the investment community. So have a great Thanksgiving and holiday season. We'll talk to you next quarter.

Operator

Thank you, Mitch. The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.