Kaiser Aluminum Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
About Kaiser Aluminum Corporation
Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NASDAQ: KALU), headquartered in Franklin, Tenn., is a leading manufacturer of specialty aluminum products, serving customers worldwide with advanced engineering solutions for aerospace and high strength, packaging, general engineering, and automotive extrusions. The Company’s North American facilities manufacture additional plate, sheet, coil, fittings, rod, bar, tube, and wire products, consistent with the tradition of quality, innovation, and service that have been key elements of the culture since the Company’s founding in 1946. The Company’s stock is included in the Russell 2000 index and the S&P index. Small Cap 600.
Management Comments
Keith A. Harvey, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, said the company’s fourth-quarter performance reflected a year of consistent performance, marking its fifth consecutive quarter ahead of internal expectations and full-year results that exceeded its 2025 outlook. He also noted that steel prices have provided a headwind and, despite non-recurring costs primarily related to the new coat line and the planned shutdown of Phase VII, the company delivered a record adjusted EBITDA for the full year of $310 million with an adjusted EBITDA margin of more than 21%.
He added that the company entered 2026 with a solid foundation, clear visibility in its end markets, and sufficient capacity to benefit from recent major investments, while focusing on reducing production and operating costs, reducing the balance sheet, and delivering significant value to customers and shareholders in the coming year.
Financial Highlights for the Fourth Quarter 2025
Net sales for the fourth quarter of 2025 increased to $929 million compared to $765 million in the year-ago period, driven primarily by an increase in available sales. The increase in average selling price reflects a 48% increase in the Hedged Cost of Alloyed Metal, which is a direct function of the contracted selling price. Shipments for the fourth quarter of 2025 improved 1% sequentially from the third quarter of 2025 as the Company ramps up operations following a planned outage at its Trentwood facility to support the Phase VII expansion and continued to benefit from improved transportation of integrated packaging at Warrick. These gains were partially offset by a normal period in the final engineering market. Fourth-quarter 2025 shipments decreased 6% year-over-year, primarily due to continued declines in OEM commercial inventory and slower-than-expected new assembly line increases in the Company’s packaging operations.
Adjusted Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2025 was $365 million, representing a 2% increase compared to the prior year period, primarily due to a decrease in aerospace shipments from the Company’s Trentwood facility, largely due to an improved product mix in its Packaging end market.
Financial Highlights for the Full Year 2025
Net sales for the full year 2025 increased to $3.37 billion compared to $3.02 billion in the prior-year period, driven primarily by an increase in the price received. The increase in average selling price reflects a 29% increase in the Hedged Cost of Alloyed Metal, which is more than a direct function of the contracted selling price.
Full-year 2025 shipments decreased 5% year-over-year, primarily due to a decrease in OEM commercial inventory, the impact of planned shutdowns related to the Phase VII investment at the Trentwood facility, and a slower-than-expected increase in new coating lines in the Company’s packaging operations.
Conversion Revenue for the full year 2025 was $1.45 billion, down from the prior year period.
Cash Flow and Stability
Adjusted EBITDA of $310 million reported for the full year 2025 and cash on hand supported by $168 million in working capital, $137 million in capital investments, $50 million in interest payments, and $51 million in cash returned to shareholders through quarterly dividends. As of December 31, 2025, the Company’s net debt ratio improved to 3.4x from 4.3x at December 31, 2024.
As of December 31, 2025, the Company had total cash of $547 million, including cash and cash equivalents of $7 million and borrowings under the Company’s Revolving Credit Facility of $540 million. There was $22 million of borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility as of December 31, 2025.
On January 13, 2026, the Company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.77 per share, payable on February 13, 2026 to shareholders as of the close of business on January 23, 2026.
2026 Outlook
For the full year 2026, the Company expects to improve Adjusted Revenue by 5% to 10% and Adjusted EBITDA by 5% to 15% year-on-year, mainly due to strengthening operational performance with metal projections closely aligned with the future curves of current markets.
