BlueLinx NYSE: BXC reported higher second-quarter sales, earnings and free cash flow as the building-products distributor cited share gains and improved pricing despite continued weakness in housing construction and repair-and-remodel activity.
Net sales increased more than 4% year over year to $814 million in the second quarter of 2026. Net income was $6.4 million, or $0.81 per diluted share, while adjusted net income rose to $9.1 million, or $1.15 per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA increased approximately 33% to $35.6 million, representing a 4.4% margin.
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The quarter included a $7.2 million import duty-related benefit. Excluding that item, adjusted EBITDA was $28.4 million and the adjusted EBITDA margin was 3.5%, according to Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Kelly Wall.
Specialty and Structural Sales Increase
President and Chief Executive Officer Shyam Reddy said the company generated volume growth at “solid margins” across key customer channels and product categories, which BlueLinx believes reflects market-share gains while single-family and multifamily housing starts declined and repair-and-remodel activity remained subdued.
Specialty products generated $564 million in sales, up nearly 4% from the prior-year quarter. The increase was driven by sales from Disdero, acquired during the fourth quarter of 2025, higher volumes in engineered wood products and industrial products, and increased pricing across nearly all product types. Disdero contributed nearly $25 million in sales and $2.7 million in adjusted EBITDA during the quarter.
Specialty gross profit increased more than 12% to $113 million. Specialty gross margin was 20%, or 18.7% excluding the duty-related benefit, compared with 18.5% a year earlier.
Wall said millwork volumes faced pressure from cheaper alternatives and aggressive local pricing, while Reddy also pointed to panel-market oversupply. Still, the company reported growth in key channels, including an 11% year-over-year volume increase in multifamily and a 2% increase in national accounts.
Structural-products sales rose nearly 6% to $250 million, aided by higher lumber pricing and volumes, partly offset by panel-volume pressure. Structural gross profit climbed 40% to $27 million, and gross margin improved to 10.9% from 8.2% in the prior-year period.
Reddy said engineered wood pricing remains competitive, including pressure from imported LVL products, but he said BlueLinx’s value-added services, pricing programs and builder pull-through relationships have helped the company maintain margins and gain share.
Costs and Margin Management
Total gross profit was $140 million, while consolidated gross margin increased to 17.2% from 15.3% in the prior-year quarter. Excluding the duty-related item, consolidated gross margin was 16.3%.
SG&A expense rose $12 million year over year to $107 million, largely reflecting the Disdero acquisition, higher fuel and third-party freight costs, and employee-related expenses. Reddy said diesel costs were up 50% year over year and flatbed freight rates increased nearly 17%, while the company received roughly 60 supplier cost increases through the first half of 2026, versus approximately 20 during the comparable 2025 period.
Management attributed its performance to inventory discipline, pricing execution, cost pass-through efforts and value-added services. Wall also cited the company’s transportation management system and pricing tools as helping regions and branches react more quickly to higher costs and market demand.
For the third quarter, BlueLinx expects specialty gross margin of 18% to 19%, with daily specialty sales volumes flat sequentially and higher than the third quarter of 2025. Structural gross margin is expected to range from 8.5% to 9.5%, with daily volumes higher both sequentially and year over year.
Trex Partnership and Growth Strategy
BlueLinx recently announced a distribution relationship with Trex in 11 markets across its central, north and south regions. Reddy said the company expects to begin loading product during the current month, with sales and profit contributions beginning in the third and fourth quarters of 2026.
However, he characterized 2027 as the more meaningful year for the partnership’s financial impact, noting that the company will need time to build market awareness and convert business. BlueLinx expects an upfront working-capital investment and plans targeted hiring, training and other investments where appropriate.
Reddy said the Trex arrangement follows other geographic and product-line expansions involving suppliers including Huber, Louisiana-Pacific, Georgia-Pacific, Westlake Royal Building Products and RDI. He said these supplier relationships support BlueLinx’s efforts to expand its specialty portfolio, serve more of customers’ whole-house needs and build its multifamily, national-account and builder pull-through programs.
Liquidity, Cash Flow and Capital Allocation
BlueLinx ended the quarter with $318 million in cash and cash equivalents and $337 million of undrawn revolver capacity, for total available liquidity of approximately $655 million. Total debt, excluding real-property financing leases, was $377 million, while net debt was $58 million. The company’s net leverage ratio was 0.6 times trailing four-quarter adjusted EBITDA, and it has no material debt maturities until 2029.
Operating cash flow was $11 million and free cash flow was $9 million, both improving from the second quarter of 2025, primarily due to higher adjusted EBITDA and inventory management.
Capital expenditures totaled $2.8 million, largely for facilities, technology and fleet investments. The company expects higher capital spending in the second half of 2026 than in the prior year as it invests in maintenance, channel and product initiatives, and digital transformation. BlueLinx also repurchased $2 million of common stock during the quarter and had $54 million remaining under its repurchase authorizations.
Wall said the company remains measured about the remainder of 2026, as housing conditions are expected to remain soft, while maintaining a long-term target of net leverage at or below two times.
About BlueLinx (NYSE:BXC)
BlueLinx Corporation is a leading distributor of building products in the United States, serving professional builders, contractors and industrial customers. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio that includes lumber, engineered wood products, plywood, oriented strand board, siding, railing, millwork and specialty construction materials. Through its nationwide network of distribution centers, BlueLinx provides inventory management, delivery and supply-chain solutions designed to help customers streamline operations and reduce carrying costs.
Founded in 2004 as a spin-off from Georgia-Pacific's distribution business, BlueLinx has developed a broad product line that spans both residential and commercial construction markets.
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