Abstract

Nordson will report fiscal first-quarter results on February 18, 2026 Post Market, with current projections indicating revenue of $653.46 million year over year growth of 2.22% and adjusted EPS of $2.38 year over year growth of 13.88%, as investors watch whether margins hold near last quarter’s 56.74% gross margin.

Market Forecast

The current quarter is projected at $653.46 million in revenue, implying 2.22% year over year growth, while adjusted EPS is estimated at $2.38, a 13.88% year over year increase; EBIT is forecast at $171.68 million, a 7.30% year over year rise. Forecast detail for gross profit margin and net profit or net margin is not available; consensus expectations therefore center on modest top-line growth and more pronounced EPS expansion versus the prior-year quarter.

Within the company’s portfolio, the main business remains balanced across three platforms, with last quarter’s revenue mix led by Industrial Precision Solutions at $361.71 million, supported by Medical and Fluid Solutions at $219.50 million and Advanced Technology Systems at $170.61 million. The most promising near-term performance contribution is expected from the core dispensing and application platform tied to Industrial Precision Solutions, which generated $361.71 million last quarter; year over year growth by segment was not disclosed.

Last Quarter Review

Nordson delivered last quarter revenue of $751.82 million year over year growth of 0.99%, a gross profit margin of 56.74%, GAAP net profit attributable to shareholders of $152.00 million, a net profit margin of 20.17%, and adjusted EPS of $3.03 year over year growth of 8.99%. A notable highlight was profitability momentum, with GAAP net profit rising sequentially by 20.55%, pointing to stronger earnings conversion into the fiscal year-end period despite modest top-line growth.

The business mix remained diversified and weighted toward its core application platform: Industrial Precision Solutions led with $361.71 million and a 48.11% share of total revenue, Medical and Fluid Solutions contributed $219.50 million at a 29.20% share, and Advanced Technology Systems delivered $170.61 million at a 22.69% share, providing a base for multi-platform operating leverage heading into the new fiscal year.

Current Quarter Outlook

Core Revenue Engine

The core revenue engine is positioned around the largest platform by sales contribution, which generated $361.71 million last quarter and constituted 48.11% of the mix. The current quarter revenue estimate of $653.46 million implies a sequential normalization from the fiscal year-end period, while still delivering 2.22% year over year growth. The more pronounced year over year expansion in adjusted EPS forecast at 13.88%, compared with revenue, indicates a potential for operating leverage through expense discipline, favorable mix, or incremental pricing that does not rely on broad-based volume acceleration.

Gross profitability is a key focus given the 56.74% gross margin achieved last quarter. If product mix skews toward higher-value solutions similar to the prior period, gross margin stability could support the EPS outperformance implied by the forecast. Operating expense cadence also matters in the first fiscal quarter; should spending track in line with seasonal patterns, EBIT forecast growth of 7.30% year over year appears consistent with the EPS trajectory. Investors will parse whether the company can sustain high-50s gross margins while navigating expected sequential revenue seasonality; delivery on both fronts would reinforce the quality of earnings behind the double-digit year over year EPS estimate.

Highest-Potential Business

Beyond the core platform, the company’s second and third platforms together provide important avenues for earnings resilience and optional growth. Medical and Fluid Solutions delivered $219.50 million last quarter and represented 29.20% of revenue. The unit’s contribution is meaningful for margin quality and cash flow due to the nature of its portfolio, and its scale provides support for overall enterprise stability when other areas experience typical quarter-to-quarter variations. While year over year growth by segment is not available, consistent execution in this platform remains an underpinning of the current quarter’s EPS forecast relative to revenue.

Advanced Technology Systems, at $170.61 million last quarter and 22.69% of group revenue, offers torque for earnings when order conversion is favorable, but it can also introduce variability when customer timing shifts. With total company revenue expected to rise 2.22% year over year and EBIT estimated to increase 7.30% year over year, even modest incremental performance from this platform could help lift operating profit given its contribution to blended margins. The forecast profile suggests management may again prioritize product and customer mix that supports attractive profitability, using the breadth of the three platforms to balance growth and margin objectives.

Stock-Price Sensitivities This Quarter

Two elements stand out as likely share-price drivers when results are released on February 18, 2026 Post Market: the relationship between revenue and margin, and the degree of earnings delivery versus expectations. With revenue forecast at $653.46 million and adjusted EPS at $2.38, the setup embeds an assumption that EPS expands materially faster than sales year over year; that places scrutiny on gross margin and operating margin execution in the quarter. If gross margin trends hold close to last quarter’s 56.74% despite a sequential revenue step-down typical around the fiscal year’s start, the market is likely to view that as confirmation of pricing, mix, and cost control that support the forecasted EPS path.

Conversely, if revenue comes in near projections but gross margin compresses, the implied operating leverage that underpins the EPS estimate may be challenged, which could compress the multiple even if the top line is in line. Given the net profit margin of 20.17% last quarter and the sequential improvement in net profit, investors will closely evaluate whether net margin can remain resilient in a seasonally softer revenue quarter. Any commentary that helps frame how the company expects to maintain or expand margins through product and customer mix, manufacturing efficiency, and expense management will be central to the stock reaction.

A second determinant will be how the three platforms contribute to the quarter’s mix. The largest platform’s performance is naturally pivotal, but incremental contributions from the smaller platforms can have outsized effects on profitability if they skew toward higher-margin products within those portfolios. The degree to which the revenue mix resembles last quarter’s distribution—48.11% for the largest platform, 29.20% for the middle platform, and 22.69% for the smallest—will help gauge whether the EPS expansion implied by the 13.88% year over year estimate is achievable without unusually favorable one-off items. The company’s capacity to convert orders efficiently early in the fiscal year and any indications about demand cadence in the remaining quarters will help the market calibrate whether the modest 2.22% year over year revenue outlook for the current quarter is a baseline from which momentum can build or a signal of a steadier, margin-focused execution path.

Finally, the relationship between EBIT performance and EPS will be watched for signals on below-the-line items. With EBIT projected to rise 7.30% year over year, a larger uplift in EPS suggests efficiency in interest, taxes, or share count that could augment operating gains. Clear disclosure on the drivers of any EPS uplift beyond operating profit would likely be rewarded, as it reassures investors that the quality of earnings remains robust and repeatable. If EPS beats come predominantly from sustainable operating sources rather than transitory items, valuation support typically proves more durable.

Analyst Opinions

Among institutional commentaries available since January, sentiment tilts Neutral. One noted example is Baird, which maintained a Neutral rating while modestly raising its price target to $278 on January 13, 2026. This stance aligns with a setup that features low single-digit revenue growth for the quarter year over year alongside double-digit EPS expansion, suggesting balanced risk and reward into the print.

Under a Neutral framework, analysts emphasize the need for confirmation on two points: delivery against EPS expectations and signs that margins can remain resilient despite seasonally softer revenue. The recent quarter’s 56.74% gross margin provides a constructive reference point; holding close to that level would validate the 13.88% year over year EPS estimate of $2.38 even if revenue tracks near the projected $653.46 million. Neutral-leaning commentary typically also looks for visibility beyond the quarter—whether the near-term mix can continue to support profitability, and whether order conversion early in the fiscal year points to steadier growth in subsequent quarters. In other words, a clean in-line quarter on revenue coupled with margin stability or slight upside would be consistent with the Neutral posture and could sustain valuation, while any disappointments on profitability would likely pressure the shares more than a modest revenue miss.

Furthermore, a Neutral perspective recognizes that last quarter already demonstrated cost discipline and earnings resilience, as evidenced by the 20.55% sequential increase in GAAP net profit despite only 0.99% year over year revenue growth. The key question for the current quarter is whether that discipline remains intact as the company transitions into a new fiscal year period that historically features a different seasonal cadence. In this context, analysts with a Neutral view are not looking for outsized top-line surprises; rather, they are focused on execution against the profitability bridge implied by the forecasts: revenue growth of 2.22% year over year, EBIT growth of 7.30% year over year, and EPS growth of 13.88% year over year.

Overall, the majority institutional stance captured in recent commentary reflects a wait-and-see posture: constructive on margin durability and cost control, cautious on near-term top-line acceleration, and attentive to how the three platforms contribute to the earnings mix. Confirmation of EPS delivery with stable or slightly better margins would likely keep the Neutral consensus intact, while clear outperformance on profitability could nudge views incrementally more positive in subsequent updates; conversely, unexpected margin compression would likely shift commentary more negatively, given the current setup rests on EPS expanding faster than revenue.