Nouryon Reports Full-Year 2023 Results

Nouryon reported full-year 2023 results with revenue of $5.19 billion, a decrease of 10% year over year, primarily due to lower volume, which was offset partially by positive contributions from price and acquisitions. Excluding impacts from foreign exchange, revenue declined 8%.

Adjusted EBITDA decreased 16% year over year, driven by volume declines and foreign currency headwinds. These were offset partially by significant tailwinds from higher prices as well as from lower costs for raw materials, energy, and logistics.

Net cash from operating activities was $996 million, versus $677 million in the prior-year period. The 47% year-over-year increase was driven by an improvement in working capital. 

“Nouryon’s 2023 full-year financial performance highlights the resiliency of our specialty portfolio in a very challenging macro environment,” said Charlie Shaver, Nouryon chairman and CEO. “In 2023, we managed our costs and pricing to maintain a high level of profitability in the face of lower demand and channel destocking across the majority of our end-markets.”

In the Performance Formulations segment, revenue declined 14% to $3.6 billion, and adjusted EBITDA decreased 26% to $678 million. This decrease was primarily driven by a decline in volume in all business lines and a negative currency impact, partly offset by a contribution from the ADOB acquisition.

Customer destocking was a significant headwind, particularly for the Agriculture and Food as well as the Paints and Coatings business lines. Demand was also lower across several end-markets. Segment adjusted EBITDA margin in Performance Formulations was 19.0%.

Revenue in the Technology Solutions segment was flat year over year at $1.6 billion, primarily driven by higher pricing in both Polymer Specialties and Renewable Fibers business lines, offset by lower volume and negative currency impact. The Technology Solutions segment adjusted EBITDA margin was 22.6%.

In 2023, Nouryon received an A- score for global climate leadership from CDP, a company that is considered the gold standard of environmental reporting that maintains the most comprehensive collection of corporate environmental data in the world. Additionally, the company earned an EcoVadis Gold rating for its sustainability achievements, placing it in the top 5% of companies then rated by EcoVadis, the world’s largest provider of business sustainability ratings.

Nouryon continued to invest in growth opportunities throughout 2023, including the closing of the acquisition of ADOB (completed in January 2023) which broadens Nouryon’s crop nutrition portfolio.