ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) reported higher second-quarter 2026 sales, earnings and cash flow, supported by stronger prices for potash, bromine and phosphate products. The company also outlined plans to reorganize its reporting structure in 2027 and introduced a cost-transformation program targeting more than $350 million in annual EBITDA improvements by the end of 2028.
Second-quarter sales rose 17% year over year to $2.1 billion, while adjusted EBITDA increased 28% to $448 million. Adjusted net income climbed 35% to $149 million, or $0.12 per share, up 33% from the prior-year period. Operating cash flow increased 8% to $290 million and free cash flow rose 34% to $94 million.
Segment results led by industrial products and potash
Industrial Products posted sales of $440 million, up 30% from a year earlier, while EBITDA increased 88% to $130 million. Aharonson said it was the segment’s strongest quarterly performance since late 2022, driven primarily by higher bromine prices and increased volumes. Bromine-based flame retardants benefited from improved electronics demand, while phosphorus-based flame-retardant sales were stable amid muted construction-market demand.
Potash sales increased 22% to $468 million and EBITDA rose 34% to $154 million. ICL’s average potash price was $376 per ton on a CIF basis, up 13% year over year and 4% sequentially. Production volume rose 11% to 1.058 million metric tons, which management attributed to process optimization, cost reduction and resource-efficiency improvements.
Phosphate Solutions sales grew 13% to $722 million. EBITDA increased slightly to $136 million as higher phosphate prices only partially offset elevated raw-material costs. Specialty food phosphate sales rose on both pricing and volume gains from existing and new customers, including customers in China and India, according to the company.
Growing Solutions sales rose 12% to $605 million, although EBITDA declined from the prior-year period. The segment faced higher nitrogen and sulfur costs, geopolitical tensions and supply-chain volatility. Management said market conditions in Brazil remained soft, though performance improved in May and June after a challenging April. Europe recorded improved sales and profitability as the company emphasized product-mix optimization.
Sulfur costs and Brazil remain key second-half risks
CFO Asaf Alperovitz said phosphate fertilizer benchmark prices increased by an average of 22% sequentially during the second quarter, but sulfur costs rose sharply. Sulfur spot prices increased 72% sequentially and more than 210% year over year, while ocean freight rates rose 45% on average during the quarter amid Middle East disruptions.
Management reiterated its 2026 consolidated EBITDA guidance of $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion. ICL continues to expect phosphate sales volume of 4.5 million to 4.7 million metric tons and an adjusted annual tax rate of about 30%.
Aharonson told analysts that ICL had secured sulfur supplies for the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth quarter and did not intend to reduce production at its Rotem or China operations. However, he said sulfur consumption costs would rise compared with the first and second quarters, creating margin pressure in phosphate products as the company uses higher-cost inventory.
Management also cited a weak Brazilian specialty-fertilizer market as a headwind. Aharonson said Brazil represents about one-third of the Growing Solutions business and that the third quarter in Brazil was not expected to be as strong as in past years, even though the company had not seen reduced consumption on the commodity fertilizer side.
New reporting structure and Elevate program
ICL plans to implement a new market-oriented organizational structure in the first quarter of 2027. The new reporting framework will include four segments:
- Nutrition Solutions, combining food and beverage, health, nutrition and wellness offerings, including food specialties and food and pharmaceutical solutions.
- Industrial Products, focused on performance and safety solutions for industrial markets including electronics, energy and construction.
- Growing Solutions, which will continue to focus on specialty plant nutrition for agriculture, turf and ornamental markets.
- Essential Minerals, combining potash and phosphate fertilizers from the company’s upstream mineral production sites.
Aharonson said the reorganization is intended to strengthen management focus on growth areas, including Specialty Crop Nutrition and Specialty Food Solutions, while giving investors greater visibility into business performance and growth drivers.
The company also launched its enterprise-wide Elevate program, designed to reduce costs, improve productivity, expand margins and strengthen cash generation. ICL expects the initiative to generate more than $150 million in annual EBITDA improvements by the end of 2027 and more than $350 million annually by the end of 2028. Management expects 50% to 60% of the improvement to come from productivity and operational efficiency, 30% to 40% from reduced external spending, and 10% to 20% from SG&A optimization.
ICL ended the quarter with $2.2 billion of available cash resources and net debt to adjusted EBITDA of 1.5 times. The company completed an $800 million senior-notes offering and declared a $75 million quarterly dividend, representing 50% of adjusted net income.
About ICL Group (NYSE:ICL)
ICL Group is a global specialty minerals and chemicals company headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel. Established in its current form through the consolidation of Israeli government–owned chemical operations, ICL has evolved into a publicly traded entity on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ICL). The company’s origins date back to state-driven mineral extraction in the Negev and the Dead Sea region, and over the decades it has grown through strategic acquisitions, technological innovation and a gradual privatization process completed in the early 2010s.
ICL’s core operations are organized into three principal business areas.
