Ascent Industries Targets $3 Million to $5 Million Annualized Gross Profit Gain

Ascent Industries Co. (ACNT) management said the company remains on track to improve annualized gross profit by $3 million to $5 million, while it expects fourth-quarter earnings and margins to compress from the third quarter.

Third-quarter net sales rose 37.8% year over year to $27.1 million. Adjusted EBITDA was $3.5 million, and operating cash flow was positive. Gross margin reached 26.2%, higher than in the second quarter but below the year-earlier level, mainly because of higher material costs.

The company’s sales pipeline stood near a record $135 million. More than $50 million was structured around Midwest. The pipeline conversion rate was 13% in the third quarter, down from 26% in the second quarter. Management said conversion varies with project mix.

CEO Bryan Kitchen described the third-quarter improvement as broad-based.