Avery Dennison reports sales growth in second quarter 2026

US materials science and digital identification solutions company Avery Dennison Corporation (Avery Dennison) has announced its preliminary financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026. Reported net sales reached 1.8 billion dollars for its Materials Group division and 667 million dollars for its Solutions Group division.

Overall reported earnings per share, which will subsequently be referred to as EPS, stood at 2.67 dollars for the second quarter. On an adjusted basis, adjusted earnings per share reached 2.89 dollars, up 19.4 percent year-over-year, which will later be referred to as YoY.

Avery Dennison president and chief executive officer Deon Stander said: "We delivered very strong second quarter results, marked by stronger-than-anticipated sales growth, solid margin expansion and adjusted EPS of 2.89 dollars, reflecting the strength of our portfolio and our team’s execution excellence." Stander added that focus on innovation and service-led differentiation continues to drive organic sales growth across high-value categories and base businesses.

Divisional performance across business segments In the Materials Group segment, reported sales increased 15.9 percent to 1.8 billion dollars. On an organic basis, sales rose 9.7 percent, supported by high single-digit volume and mix growth alongside low single-digit price increases. High-value categories grew mid-single digits, while base categories expanded by low double digits. The division reported an operating margin of 15.6 percent, while its adjusted operating margin reached 15.8 percent, up 20 basis points. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation, henceforth referred to as EBITDA, margin for the division reached 18 percent, an increase of 20 basis points.

In the Solutions Group segment, reported sales decreased 0.5 percent to 667 million dollars, though sales rose 2.6 percent on an organic basis. High-value and base categories both increased by low single digits, while overall apparel categories recorded high single-digit growth. Reported operating margin for the segment stood at 8.9 percent, while the adjusted operating margin widened by 150 basis points to 11.5 percent. Adjusted EBITDA margin for the segment increased by 150 basis points to 18.6 percent.

Capital deployment and full year outlook

During the first half of 2026, the company returned 347 million dollars in cash to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends. Avery Dennison repurchased 1.2 million shares for a total payment of 198 million dollars, reducing its share count by 2.1 million shares net of dilution compared to the prior-year period. Net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio stood at 2.3 times at the end of the second quarter.

Looking ahead to the full year 2026, Avery Dennison expects reported EPS to range between 9.40 dollars and 9.70 dollars. Excluding an estimated 0.60 dollars per share impact from restructuring charges and other items, full year adjusted EPS is projected to reach between 10.00 dollars and 10.30 dollars.