Hain Celestial reported weaker underlying sales and earnings for its first quarter today (9 November), extending its run of quarterly losses.
The US food and beverage company was reported last month to be considering potential Chapter 11 protection. However, the possibility was not referenced in the results statement released at 07:00 ET.
For the three months ended September, Hain Celestial’s net sales declined 29% to $260m.
The owner of Greek Gods yogurt said asset disposals, discontinued products and exits from certain categories accounted for 22 percentage points of the overall reduction.
On an organic basis, sales decreased 7%, reflecting weaker “volume/mix”. Hain Celestial attributed the decline partly to lower demand for its “meal prep” products, while noting that growth in its kids and beverages businesses provided some offset.
Adjusted EBITDA fell to $18m from $20m in the same quarter a year earlier.
The company recorded a first-quarter net loss of $11m, narrowing from a $21m loss in the prior-year period. The improvement was supported by lower interest expenses and plant-closure costs. Hain Celestial, which owns Earth’s Best, reported an adjusted net loss of $6.6m, compared with $7.2m in the first quarter of its 2026 financial year.
President and CEO Alison Lewis drew attention to the improvement in gross margin, which reached 21.8%, an increase of 330 basis points year on year.
In a statement, Lewis said: “During the first quarter, we made progress on our strategic actions to realign our cost structure, drive productivity and improve our commercial and innovation capabilities.
“We saw our gross margin improve meaningfully year over year, reflecting progress on both our commercial and portfolio actions. We remain focused on simplifying our operating model and creating a stronger go-forward Hain.”
In September, Hain Celestial announced an agreement to sell its “international” operations to private-equity investor Aurelius for $323m in cash.
A filing submitted to the SEC on 15 October indicated that the transaction had not fulfilled every required condition.
Hain Celestial said the deal was contingent on “the company and its lenders entering into an amendment of the company’s credit agreement” by 12 October. “That condition was not satisfied,” it added.
The food group said today that it had obtained all necessary regulatory clearances, while reiterating that the lending condition remained outstanding. It added: “The company remains in discussions with Aurelius and continues to pursue a path forward to complete the transaction.”
Lewis said: “Receiving the final required regulatory approvals is an important step toward completing the sale of our international business. We remain in discussions with our lenders regarding our capital structure and with Aurelius regarding a path forward for the transaction. If completed, the international sale would allow us to reduce debt and create a more focused North America business with strong brands in attractive categories. We will provide updates as material developments occur.”