Avantor NYSE: AVTR reported a return to organic revenue growth in the third quarter of 2026, led by accelerating performance in its VWR Distribution & Services segment and a return to growth in its Bioscience & Medtech Products business.
Revenue totaled $1.698 billion, up 5.2% organically and 4.6% on a reported basis from the prior-year quarter. Adjusted EBITDA was $257 million, or a 15.1% margin, while adjusted earnings per share came in at $0.22, above the company’s expectations.
President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Ligner said the quarter marked an important milestone in the company’s Revival program, which is intended to sharpen strategic focus, improve execution and support sustainable growth.
“Our third quarter results make a return to organic revenue growth for Avantor,” Ligner said. “We have more work to do, but the quarter demonstrates why we believe the action we are taking through Revival are putting us on a path to sustainable growth.”
VWR Growth Accelerates as End Markets Improve
VWR Distribution & Services generated third-quarter revenue of $1.23 billion, representing 5.8% organic growth. The segment’s adjusted operating income was $119 million, with an adjusted operating margin of 9.7%.
Management said higher volumes drove both sequential and year-over-year growth, reflecting stronger commercial execution and improving end-market conditions. Ligner estimated that approximately half of VWR’s growth was attributable to commercial initiatives, including expanded relationships with large customers, gains among small and midsize accounts, and improved e-commerce performance.
The company cited continuing momentum among large pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers, which have continued to invest in research and development pipelines. It also reported early signs of improving demand among North American higher-education and early-stage biotechnology customers, as well as strength in certain industrial categories including mining.
Geographically, Avantor said demand in the Americas was performing well and activity in Asia was also favorable, though Asia remains a smaller region for the company. Europe continued to lag the Americas and Asia amid high energy costs, pressure on government funding and broader macroeconomic challenges.
VWR’s operating margin declined both year over year and sequentially, primarily due to sales mix, inflationary pressures and growth investments. Steve Eck, Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer, said the company nevertheless expects modest consolidated margin expansion from the third quarter to the fourth quarter.
BMP Returns to Growth
The Bioscience & Medtech Products, or BMP, segment reported revenue of $465 million, up 3.6% organically from the prior-year period. The segment returned to organic growth despite an approximately 150-basis-point headwind from unusual customer ordering and shipment patterns in its serum business.
Process Chemicals delivered high-single-digit growth, supported by improved operations, healthy end markets and order performance. NuSil revenue increased at a low-teens rate as the company executed against what management described as a healthy order book. Fluid Handling and Research and Specialty Chemicals each declined at a low-single-digit rate.
BMP adjusted operating income was $123 million, translating to a 26.6% adjusted operating margin. The margin was flat year over year despite inflationary pressure and improved sequentially from the second quarter on higher volume and mix.
Ligner said the company has increased manufacturing throughput during 2026 through Revival-related operational initiatives. At one North American production line, Avantor produced more than 25,000 kilograms of product in a single week in early September, exceeding the line’s original design-capacity target and reaching nearly 99% overall equipment effectiveness for that week.
Management also cited supply-chain planning, digital manufacturing workflows and electronic batch records as initiatives intended to improve product quality, delivery performance and customer service. Ligner said BMP has generated a positive book-to-bill ratio for three consecutive quarters, while Process Chemicals posted high-single-digit order and sales growth year to date.
Cash Flow, Leverage and Guidance
Avantor generated $156 million in free cash flow during the quarter, or $169 million excluding cash restructuring costs. The company reduced net debt by $173 million during the period and ended the quarter with $3.235 billion in net debt. Its adjusted net leverage ratio improved to 3.1x from 3.3x in the previous quarter.
The company said it remains on track to reduce adjusted net leverage below 3x by year-end. Its capital-allocation priorities include targeted investments to improve customer service and execution, along with continued balance-sheet strengthening.
For 2026, Avantor raised its outlook for organic revenue growth to a range of 0.75% to 1.25%. The outlook implies fourth-quarter organic growth of 2.5% to 4.5%, including mid-single-digit growth in VWR and flat to slightly positive organic growth in BMP.
The BMP outlook includes an expected roughly 400-basis-point headwind from discrete comparisons, including electronic materials ordering patterns, as well as a more challenging comparison in Process Chemicals. The company expects BMP revenue to rise modestly sequentially in the fourth quarter.
Avantor maintained its adjusted EBITDA margin outlook, while forecasting modest margin expansion from the third to fourth quarter. It raised its full-year adjusted EPS outlook to $0.81 to $0.83 and increased projected free cash flow to between $525 million and $550 million.
During the question-and-answer session, Chief Financial Officer Todd Garner said the company’s pricing realization for 2026 appears to be between 1% and 2%. Management said this remains below inflationary cost increases but represents an improvement in the company’s ability to reduce the lag between supplier cost increases and customer pricing.
Garner, who joined Avantor as CFO on Sept. 21, said the company is focused on bringing greater transparency, financial rigor and execution discipline to the Revival program. Avantor plans to provide a longer-term financial framework and additional details on its strategy at its Investor Day on Dec. 8.
About Avantor (NYSE:AVTR)
Avantor, Inc is a global provider of mission-critical products and services used in the life sciences, healthcare, education, and advanced technology industries. The company supplies chemicals, reagents, laboratory consumables, equipment, and other materials used in research, development, manufacturing, and quality-control activities.
Avantor also provides specialized solutions for biopharmaceutical production, including materials and services that support drug development, biologics manufacturing, and other bioprocessing applications.
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