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KOP · Koppers Holdings Inc.

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$47.14 +0.92 (+1.99%) At close · Aug 14
Market Cap
$874.09M
Shares
18.91M
All earnings calls

Earnings call · FY2025 Q4

Koppers Holdings Inc. Q4 FY2025 Earnings Call

Koppers Holdings Inc. Q4 FY2025 Earnings Call

Concluded Feb 26, 2026
Feb 26, 2026 82 turns
Period
FY2025 Q4
Runtime
Sources
3 artifacts

Executive readout · one minute

What matters this quarter

Koppers reported full-year 2025 sales of $1.88 billion (down from $2.09 billion) and adjusted EBITDA of $256.7 million, with adjusted EPS of $4.07 and a record 13.7% adjusted EBITDA margin, while launching its Catalyst transformation program that delivered $46 million in benefits amid softer demand and market share losses.

Catalyst transformation program 28 Profitability and margins 21 Utility pole business (UIP) and Douglas fir acquisition 16 Capital deployment and shareholder returns 10 Safety (zero harm) 7 Sustainability and ESG recognition 5

Management tone

Confident

Net tone +55 · moderate hedging

Grounding quotes
  • “the second highest year on record for both when you exclude KJCC”
  • “13.7% adjusted EBITDA margin actually represents a new high watermark for Koppers Holdings Inc.”
  • “I believe we are on track to reach our goals of double-digit adjusted EPS growth over the next 3 years, $300 million of cumulative free cash flow over that same time period, and a mid-teens margin run rate by 2028”
  • “6% resulting from softer market conditions and some net loss of market share”

Forward guidance

7 guided metrics

Management's latest ranges and targets are included below.

Research coverage

3 live sources

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Revenue · derived Q4 $432.70M -9.3% YoY
Net income · derived Q4 $29.70M

Research materials

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Key takeaways

What improved, and what deserves a closer read.

Constructive signals

  • Adjusted EBITDA margin of 13.7% is a new all-time high for Koppers; full-year adjusted EBITDA of $256.7 million was the second-highest on record.
  • Adjusted EPS of $4.07 marked the sixth consecutive year above $4, with the company targeting double-digit adjusted EPS growth over the next three years.
  • Catalyst transformation delivered $46 million in benefits in 2025 and reduced adjusted SG&A costs by 15% while cutting headcount by 11% versus year-end 2024.
  • Operating cash flow of $122.5 million was the seventh straight year above $100 million, with capex normalized to $55 million.
  • $38.2 million of share repurchases, $6.4 million in dividends, and $21 million on a small utility pole procurement acquisition demonstrated heavier capital return to shareholders.
  • Best-ever total recordable injury rate for the second consecutive year, with serious safety incidents down 70% year-over-year.

Risks & pressure points

  • Full-year sales declined 10% to $1.88 billion, including a 4% drop from the exits of phthalic anhydride and the railroad structures business sale and a 6% drop from softer market conditions and net market share loss.
  • Q4 consolidated sales fell 9.3% to $432.7 million, with PC down 13.6% and CMMC down 15.2%.
  • Full-year adjusted EPS of $4.07 was down versus $4.11 in the prior year, and Q4 adjusted EPS of $0.70 was down 9.1% from $0.77.
  • Full-year adjusted EBITDA of $256.7 million was down versus $261.6 million in the prior year.
  • Q4 adjusted EBITDA of $53.2 million was down 3.6% from $55.2 million, with full-year results reflecting reduced market share and softer demand in key business lines.

Key moments

Jump directly to management's words in the synchronized transcript.

“With 1 year of Catalyst under our belt, I believe we are on track to reach our goals of double-digit adjusted EPS growth over the next 3 years, $300 million of cumulative free cash flow over that same time period, and a mid-teens margin run rate by 2028.” Leroy Ball, CEO
“At December 31, we had $383 million in available liquidity and $881 million of net debt, representing a net leverage ratio of 3.4 times. We remain focused on our long-term goal of reducing the net leverage ratio to 2 to 3 times.” Brad Pearce, Chief Accounting Officer

Forward guidance

From the 8-K filed Feb 26, 2026.

Metric Guided
Net sales table
2026 Forecast
$1.9B – $2B
Adjusted EBITDA table
2026 Forecast
$250M – $270M
Effective tax rate on adjusted net income table
2026 Forecast
28%
Operating cash flow table
2026 Forecast
$150M – $170M
Adjusted EPS table
2026 Forecast
$4.20 – $5.00
Capital expenditures table
2026 Forecast
$55M

Guidance from the call

Stated verbally and extracted from the transcript.

Metric Guided
Top-line increase
2026
11%

Quarter detail

How the reported period landed and where the business moved.

Capital returned

Buybacks · derived
$4.90M
Dividend / share
$0.09
Full-screen source Call document