Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.13 EPS

Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.13, Zacks reports. Alto Ingredients had a return on equity of 2.99% and a net margin of 1.45%.

Here are the key takeaways from Alto Ingredients’ conference call:

• Alto reported a measurable turnaround in Q1 — adjusted EBITDA of $4.7 million and net income of $4.0 million, a swing from prior-year losses driven by stronger crush margins and export premiums.
• The company recognized $3.9 million of 45Z tax-credit proceeds in Q1 and expects to qualify ~90 million gallons annually, targeting approximately $15 million net proceeds from 45Z if monetized as planned.
• Management is investing in operational upgrades under a $25 million 2026 CapEx plan — including a second alcohol loadout, Pekin dock repairs, a Columbia CO2 tank, and a Pekin dry?mill debottleneck to add ~5 million gallons (~8%) annual capacity — to boost utilization, logistics and higher?value sales.
• Cost and operational headwinds persisted: higher natural gas/electricity costs (+$5.3 million), increased repair & maintenance (+$2.4 million), and weather-driven curtailments reduced volumes ~4% and produced a Q1 gross loss in the Western segment.
• Outlook remains cautiously optimistic but uncertain due to macro risks (Middle East unrest, export/logistics) and the pace of E15 adoption, which together could materially affect demand and industry margins.

Alto Ingredients Price Performance

Shares of Alto Ingredients stock traded down $0.43 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $5.56. 3,192,223 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,579,161. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.64. Alto Ingredients has a 1-year low of $0.80 and a 1-year high of $5.99. The company has a market cap of $429.73 million, a P/E ratio of 34.75 and a beta of 0.14. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $4.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.03.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alto Ingredients

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Alto Ingredients during the fourth quarter worth $3,324,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alto Ingredients by 169.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 715,180 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,060,000 after buying an additional 449,697 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alto Ingredients by 2,967.5% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 369,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,064,000 after buying an additional 357,467 shares in the last quarter. Truffle Hound Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alto Ingredients during the fourth quarter worth $864,000. Finally, Corsair Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Alto Ingredients during the fourth quarter worth $721,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research cut Alto Ingredients from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Alto Ingredients from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Alto Ingredients from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Alto Ingredients presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

About Alto Ingredients

Alto Ingredients, Inc (NASDAQ: ALTO) is a diversified producer of alcohol-based products and specialty ingredients for industrial, food, beverage and personal care applications. The company’s core offering centers on ethanol produced for fuel markets, as well as an expanding portfolio of natural and organic alcohols, glycerin and other ingredient solutions. Alto’s product lines serve a range of end markets, including renewable fuels, confectionery, flavorings, cosmetics and sanitizers.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Alto Ingredients operates a network of production facilities across the United States.