JBT Marel 2025 Q1 Earnings Misses Targets with Net Income Plummeting 858.8%

JBT Marel (JBTM) reported its fiscal 2025 Q1 earnings on May 05th, 2025. The company experienced a significant downturn, with a net income plunging by 858.8% compared to the previous year. Despite the revenue growth, the earnings failed to meet analyst expectations, leading to a suspension of full-year guidance due to tariff uncertainties. The company’s second-quarter guidance anticipates revenue between $885 million to $915 million, with adjusted EPS projected in the range of $1.20 to $1.40.

Revenue
The total revenue of JBT Marel soared by 117.7% to reach $854.10 million in the first quarter of 2025, compared to $392.30 million during the same period in 2024. This growth was driven primarily by product revenue, which accounted for $771.10 million, while service revenue added $83 million, culminating in the overall revenue total of $854.10 million.

Earnings/Net Income
JBT Marel reported a drastic shift from a profit of $0.71 per share in the first quarter of 2024 to a loss of $3.35 per share in 2025 Q1. The net loss stood at $173 million, marking a steep decline of 858.8% from the net income of $22.80 million recorded in the previous year. The earnings per share outcome is considerably negative.

Price Action
The stock price of JBT Marel has dropped 4.12% during the latest trading day, has edged down 0.76% during the most recent full trading week, and has plummeted 18.14% month-to-date.

Post-Earnings Price Action Review
Over the past five years, the strategy of purchasing JBT Marel shares immediately following the earnings release and holding them for 30 days has yielded moderate returns, achieving an annualized return of 9.16% from February 2020 to April 2025. This approach has outperformed the benchmark, which recorded an annualized return of 6.95% in the same timeframe. The strategy showed resilience during the 2022 market downturn, experiencing a maximum drawdown of 15.61% and recovering within six months. Despite recent volatility, historical performance suggests a potential for moderate gains through strategic post-earnings investments.

CEO Commentary
Brian Deck, CEO, expressed satisfaction with JBT Marel's first-quarter performance, highlighting better-than-anticipated revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and margins. He noted strong year-over-year demand growth of 12%, particularly in the poultry industry, and emphasized the company's diversified end markets. Deck acknowledged the impact of US tariff policy and macroeconomic uncertainty but asserted that JBT Marel is well-positioned to manage these challenges due to its global footprint and capacity. He expressed optimism about the integration progress and the company’s value proposition, stating, "we believe we are more confident than ever in the benefits of the JBT Marel combination."

Guidance
JBT Marel has suspended its full-year financial guidance for 2025 due to uncertainties surrounding tariffs but provided second-quarter guidance, expecting revenue between $885 million to $915 million and an adjusted EBITDA margin of 14.5% to 15.25%. The company estimated an annualized cost impact from tariffs of approximately $50 million to $60 million, with efforts expected to reduce this impact by more than half in the latter half of the year. Adjusted EPS is projected in a range of $1.20 to $1.40 for Q2.

Additional News
The merger between JBT Corporation and Marel was successfully completed on January 2, 2025, combining their strengths to transform the food technology sector. In the realm of C-Level changes, JBT Marel announced the appointment of Arni Sigurdsson as President, alongside Brian Deck as CEO, ensuring strategic leadership for growth. Meanwhile, significant changes in capital structure occurred with JBT Marel entering a new financing structure, including a $1.8 billion revolving credit facility and a $900 million Senior Secured Term Loan B, aimed at optimizing financial operations post-acquisition.