Research News and Market Data on ACCO
10/29/2026
- Reported net sales of $380 million, in line with outlook
- Diluted EPS of $0.12 and adjusted diluted EPS of $0.28, both include $0.11 per share in net tariff refunds
- Closed on the acquisition of Trust on October 1, 2026
- Raises full-year 2026 outlook to reflect tariff refunds and the acquisition
LAKE ZURICH, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– ACCO Brands Corporation (NYSE: ACCO) today reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026.
“We delivered third quarter sales consistent with our outlook, driven by a solid back-to-school season in both North America and Mexico and stabilizing trends in Workspace Solutions. Adjusted EPS included net tariff refunds, with underlying operations in line with outlook. We generated strong cash flows and continue to pay down debt, ending September with a consolidated leverage ratio of 3.6x,” stated ACCO Brands’ President and Chief Executive Officer, Tom Tedford.
“Technology peripherals remain our strongest long-term growth opportunity, and we closed on the acquisition of Trust, which will expand our tech peripheral portfolio to approach $500 million of pro forma annual sales. With Kensington, PowerA, EPOS and Trust, we now have a scaled platform across consumer and enterprise channels in large growth categories. Our focus is integrating these brands and delivering synergy opportunities,” added Mr. Tedford.
Third Quarter Tariff Refund Impact
During the third quarter of 2026, net tariff refunds benefited consolidated operating income by $15.1 million. This resulted in a net per share benefit of $0.11 to our diluted earnings per share and 400 basis points of improvement in the consolidated adjusted operating margin in the quarter.
Third Quarter Results
Third quarter net sales decreased 0.9 percent to $380.3 million from $383.7 million in 2025. This decrease reflects 4.9 percent growth from the EPOS acquisition and 0.4 percent from favorable foreign exchange, which were more than offset by a 6.2 percent decline in comparable sales. Technology peripherals experienced softness due to global industry-wide challenges. Our overall back-to-school season was positive, with more sales being recognized in the second quarter.
Operating income was $30.3 million, compared with $26.0 million in 2025. Current-year operating income included one-time charges of $5.9 million, compared with $1.5 million in the prior year. Adjusted operating income increased to $47.8 million, up from $39.2 million in 2025, reflecting cost savings, partly offset by lower mix. Current-year operating income and adjusted operating income include $15.1 million in net tariff refunds.
Net income was $11.5 million, or $0.12 per share, compared with $4.0 million, or $0.04 per share, in 2025. The improvement in net income reflects items noted above in operating income and adjusted operating income, plus differences in discrete tax items. Adjusted net income increased to $27.2 million, from $19.5 million in 2025, and adjusted earnings per share rose to $0.28 from $0.21 in 2025.
Business Segment Results
ACCO Brands Americas – Third quarter segment net sales of $219.8 million decreased 3.4 percent from $227.6 million in the prior year. Growth from the EPOS acquisition of 2.0 percent and favorable foreign currency of 1.0 percent was more than offset by a 6.4 percent comparable sales decline. Lower demand for technology peripherals was offset by growth in Latin America.
Third quarter operating income was $25.4 million, compared with $24.7 million a year earlier, with larger non-recurring items this year. Adjusted operating income increased to $38.1 million, from $32.7 million in the prior year. The increase in both operating and adjusted operating income reflects net tariff refunds, partly offset by lower mix and volume.
ACCO Brands International – Third quarter segment net sales were $160.5 million, an increase of 2.8 percent from $156.1 million in the prior year. The EPOS acquisition increased sales by 9.2 percent and unfavorable foreign exchange reduced sales 0.4 percent. Comparable sales were down 6.0 percent year-over-year, reflecting lower demand for technology peripherals and softness in Australia.
Third quarter operating income was $12.4 million, compared with operating income of $10.5 million in the prior year. Adjusted operating income was $17.0 million, compared with $15.9 million in the prior year. The increase in both reflects pricing and cost savings, partly offset by lower mix.
Nine Month Results
Net sales of $1,139.1 million increased 3.9 percent from $1,095.9 million in 2025. The EPOS acquisition increased sales by $56.4 million, or 5.1 percent, and favorable foreign exchange increased sales by $27.6 million, or 2.5 percent. Comparable sales decreased 3.7 percent due to industry-wide trends in technology peripherals, partially mitigated by stronger demand for learning and creative categories in the Americas segment. Globally, workspace solutions trends have moderated versus the prior year.
Operating income was $50.2 million compared with $52.3 million in 2025. Current-year operating income included restructuring and other non-recurring items totaling $23.2 million, compared with $13.2 million in the prior year. Prior-year operating income benefited from a gain on sale of assets of $6.9 million. Adjusted operating income increased to $107.6 million from $93.2 million in 2025. Current-year operating income and adjusted operating income include $15.1 million of net tariff refunds.
Net income was $45.0 million, or $0.47 per share, compared with a net income of $20.0 million, or $0.21 per share, in 2025. Nine-month net income benefited from a $33.8 million bargain purchase gain related to the preliminary purchase price allocation, partially offset by costs for the EPOS acquisition, and reflects items noted above in operating income. Prior-year net income was positively impacted by discrete tax items, notably the Company’s settlement of the outstanding tax assessments in Brazil. Adjusted net income was $56.4 million compared with $43.3 million in 2025, and adjusted earnings per share were $0.59 per share compared with $0.46 per share in 2025, reflecting items noted above in operating income and adjusted operating income.
Cash Flow, Debt and Dividend
Year to date, free cash flow was $89.0 million including $21.3 million of tariff refunds, compared with $25.8 million in the prior year. The cash balance of $174.7 million at quarter end included cash held for the acquisition of Trust, which closed on October 1. The Company’s consolidated leverage ratio was 3.6x as of September 30, 2026.
Year to date, the Company has paid dividends of $20.8 million.
On October 23, 2026, ACCO Brands announced that its board of directors declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.075 per share, payable on December 9, 2026 to stockholders of record at the close of business on November 20, 2026.
Full Year 2026 Outlook
For the full year, the Company expects reported sales to increase 4.0 percent to 6.0 percent, updated to include one quarter of expected sales from the acquired Trust business. Full-year adjusted EPS is expected to be $0.98 to $1.02 inclusive of $0.12 from the tariff refund. The Company expects 2026 free cash flow of approximately $100 million and the consolidated leverage ratio of approximately 3.5x at year-end.
Webcast
At 8:30 a.m. ET on October 30, 2026, ACCO Brands Corporation will host a conference call to discuss the Company’s third quarter 2026 results. The call will be broadcast live via webcast. The webcast can be accessed through the Investor Relations section of www.accobrands.com. The webcast will be in listen-only mode and will be available for replay following the event.
About ACCO Brands Corporation
ACCO Brands is a global leader in branded technology peripherals, workspace solutions, education and creative products that enable people to work with more productivity, learn with more confidence and play with more enjoyment. We develop, nurture and acquire a portfolio of distinct, innovative and widely recognized brands, including EPOS®, Five Star®, Kensington®, Leitz®, Mead®, PowerA®, Tilibra®, Trust® and many others. More information about ACCO Brands Corporation (NYSE: ACCO) can be found at www.accobrands.com.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
In addition to financial results reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), we have provided certain non-GAAP financial information in this earnings release to aid investors in understanding the Company’s performance. Each non-GAAP financial measure is defined and reconciled to its most directly comparable GAAP financial measure in the “About Non-GAAP Financial Measures” section of this earnings release.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained herein, other than statements of historical fact, particularly those anticipating future financial performance, business prospects, growth, strategies, business operations and similar matters, results of operations, liquidity and financial condition, and those relating to cost reductions and anticipated pre-tax savings and restructuring costs are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of management based on information available to us at the time such statements are made. These statements, which are generally identifiable by the use of the words “will,” “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “future”, “project,” “plan,” and similar expressions, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, are made as of the date hereof, and we undertake no duty or obligation to update them. Forward-looking statements are subject to the occurrence of events outside the Company’s control and actual results, and the timing of events may differ materially from those suggested or implied by such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Investors and others are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements when deciding whether to buy, sell or hold the Company’s securities.
Our outlook is based on certain assumptions which we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. These include, without limitation, assumptions regarding consumer demand, tariffs, global geopolitical and economic uncertainties, and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; and the other factors described below.
Among the factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements are: changes in trade policy and regulations, including changes in trade agreements and the imposition of tariffs, the timing and recoverability of tariff refund claims, and the resulting consequences; global political and economic uncertainties; a limited number of large customers account for a significant percentage of our sales; sales of our products are affected by general economic and business conditions globally and in the countries in which we operate; risks associated with foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; challenges related to the highly competitive business environment in which we operate; our ability to develop and market innovative products that meet consumer demands and to expand into new and adjacent product categories; our ability to successfully expand our business in emerging markets and the exposure to greater financial, operational, regulatory, compliance and other risks in such markets; the continued decline in the use of certain of our products; risks associated with seasonality, the sufficiency of investment returns on pension assets, risks related to actuarial assumptions, changes in government regulations and changes in the unfunded liabilities of a multi-employer pension plan; any impairment of our intangible assets; our ability to secure, protect and maintain our intellectual property rights, and our ability to license rights and receive certifications from equipment and software businesses to support our technology accessories business; the introduction by third parties of new and successful gaming consoles; our ability to grow profitably through acquisitions, and successfully integrate them; our ability to successfully execute our multi-year restructuring and cost savings program and realize the anticipated benefits; continued disruptions in the global supply chain; risks associated with inflation and other changes in the cost or availability of raw materials, transportation, labor, and other necessary supplies and services and the cost of finished goods; risks associated with outsourcing production of certain of our products, information technology systems and other administrative functions; the failure, inadequacy or interruption of our information technology systems or their supporting infrastructure; risks associated with a cybersecurity incident or information security breach, including that related to a disclosure of personally identifiable information; risks associated with the use by us and other suppliers of artificial intelligence, risks associated with our indebtedness, including limitations imposed by restrictive covenants, our debt service obligations, and our ability to comply with financial ratios and tests; a change in or discontinuance of our stock repurchase program or the payment of dividends; product liability claims, recalls or regulatory actions; the impact of litigation or other legal proceedings; the impact of additional tax liabilities stemming from our global operations and changes in tax laws, regulations and tax rates; our failure to comply with applicable laws, rules and regulations and self-regulatory requirements, the costs of compliance and the impact of changes in such laws; our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; the volatility of our stock price; risks associated with circumstances outside our control, including those caused by telecommunication failures, labor strikes, power and/or water shortages, public health crises, such as the occurrence of contagious diseases, severe weather events, war, terrorism and other geopolitical incidents; and other risks and uncertainties described in “Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, and in other reports we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
For further information:
Christopher McGinnis
Investor Relations
(847) 796-4320
Kori Reed
Media Relations
(224) 501-0406Source: ACCO Brands Corporation
