Ball Posts Comparable EPS of $1.10 in Third Quarter and Raises 2026 Outlook
Key Facts
Ball reported third-quarter 2026 results on November 3, posting comparable diluted earnings of $1.10 per share, up 6.8% from $1.03 in the year-earlier period. The company said sales reached $4.19 billion, compared with $3.38 billion a year earlier. Sales growth coincided with a 4.7% increase in global aluminum packaging shipments during the quarter. By contrast, comparable operating earnings grew 2.5% year over year, to $451 million from $440 million. The company also reported a net loss attributable to it of $94 million, compared with net income of $321 million in the third quarter of 2025.
The comparison between sales and net income shows a clear divergence in the period's results: sales increased, while the company shifted from a profit to a loss based on the reported figures. Total diluted loss per share was 36 cents, following total diluted earnings of $1.18 per share a year earlier. The comparable diluted earnings-per-share measure, which the company reported separately, rose to $1.10 from $1.03. At the operating level, comparable earnings grew 2.5%, below the 4.7% increase in global shipments. These figures highlight the different measures presented by the company: positive comparable earnings alongside a net loss on a total-results basis.
In the North and Central American beverage business, comparable operating earnings were $210 million, compared with $215 million in the year-earlier quarter, while sales rose to $2.06 billion from $1.64 billion. Ball attributed sales growth to higher volume and an improved price mix, mainly related to higher aluminum prices. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, comparable operating earnings rose to $170 million from $164 million, and sales increased to $1.33 billion from $1.13 billion. The company said the segment's earnings reflected higher volume and an improved price mix, partly offset by higher costs. The comparison between the two segments shows that increased sales did not translate into a uniform direction for comparable operating earnings.
In South America's beverage business, comparable operating earnings were $92 million, up from $77 million in the same period of 2025, with sales of $653 million compared with $508 million. Ball said the segment's volume increased by a low double-digit percentage year over year. Regional performance therefore varied during the quarter: comparable earnings fell in North and Central America and rose in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and South America. At the company-wide level, higher global shipments coincided with slower growth in comparable operating earnings. Ball's aluminum packaging shipments totaled 111.9 billion units in 2025, compared with 107.4 billion units in 2024, according to its annual and sustainability report.
The company returned $431 million to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends in the first nine months of 2026. It said it remains on track to return at least $800 million to shareholders during the year through repurchases and dividends. For its outlook, Ball expects comparable diluted earnings per share to grow by more than 10% in 2026 and free cash flow to be in the range of $900 million. The company scheduled its third-quarter results call for November 3, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. These outlook and capital-return disclosures frame the company's expectations for the rest of the year, after results that combined higher sales and comparable earnings with a reported net loss.