Element Solutions Lifts 2026 Ebitda Outlook After Solstice Deal Ends

The Tip Desk · October 26, 2026 · 3 min read

The specialty chemicals company now expects full-year adjusted Ebitda of about $720 million after a $995 million sales quarter and a terminated merger.

Element Solutions Inc (ESI), a global specialty chemicals technology company, raised its 2026 adjusted EBITDA outlook to approximately $720 million after a third quarter in which Electronics demand and recent acquisitions carried another record of sales and profit.

The company now expects full-year adjusted EBITDA of about $720 million, inclusive of full-year contributions from the Micromax and EFC acquisitions and assuming stable exchange rates and metal prices, and an adjusted EPS growth rate of over 20% for the full year. Chief Executive Officer Benjamin Gliklich said the standalone trajectory had improved after the Solstice deal ended.

Net sales were $995 million, up 52% on a reported basis and 13% organically from the third quarter of 2025. Organic growth slowed from 15% in the second quarter. Reported net income was $66 million, compared with $39 million a year earlier. GAAP diluted EPS was $0.27, versus $0.16. Adjusted EPS was $0.50, versus $0.41.

Electronics net sales were $780 million, including 30% from acquisitions, with organic growth of 18%. Gliklich said demand across AI infrastructure and other high-performance electronics applications drove broad-based double-digit organic growth in each Electronics vertical. Electronics adjusted EBITDA was $148 million, up 46% reported and 45% in constant currency. The company said Micromax had a positive impact of 19% on constant-currency adjusted EBITDA growth.

Specialties net sales were $216 million, including 12% from acquisitions net of divestitures, with organic growth of 1%. Specialties adjusted EBITDA was $43 million, down 6% reported and in constant currency, after a 7% increase in the second quarter. The company said EFC Gases & Advanced Materials had a positive impact of 16% on constant-currency adjusted EBITDA growth.

Companywide adjusted EBITDA was $191 million, up 30% reported and 29% in constant currency from $147 million a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA margin increased 50 basis points to 28.2%. Net income margin rose 60 basis points to 6.6%.

Cash flows from operating activities were $159 million and free cash flow was $135 million in the third quarter. Cash and cash equivalents were $224.9 million at September 30, 2026. Total debt was $2,094.7 million, including $1,294.7 million of first-lien debt and $800 million of senior notes due 2028. Net debt was $1,869.8 million. The company said approximately 94% of debt was fixed.

On July 6, 2026, Element Solutions entered a merger agreement with Solstice. On August 27, 2026, the parties mutually terminated the agreement and, subject to customary exceptions, released each other from claims relating to the contemplated merger. Gliklich said the team did not miss a step amid the distraction of the proposed and subsequently terminated transaction.

The company said it is investing alongside customers as they build capacity and as the supply chain brings forward advanced technologies, adding capacity in high-growth product lines and deepening strategic supply chain relationships. The updated 2026 adjusted EBITDA target of approximately $720 million and the expectation of adjusted EPS growth of over 20% for the full year sit against that Electronics-led mix and the Micromax and EFC contributions already in the results.