BUDA (NYSEAMERICAN:BUDA) executives highlighted profitable growth, a debt-free balance sheet, and early momentum in 2026 during the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call—its first as a public company following an IPO completed in January.
IPO milestone and “ultra-fresh” positioning
Chief Executive Officer Horatio Lonsdale-Hands said the January IPO was “an important milestone,” adding that becoming a public company positions Buda Juice “to scale what we believe is a new category in the fresh perimeter of the supermarket.”
Full-year 2025 results: Revenue up about 12%, profitability maintained
Management reported that 2025 revenue increased approximately 12% year-over-year. Lonsdale-Hands said operating income was $3.45 million and GAAP net income was $3.53 million, adding that the company remained “profitable and debt-free.”
Chief Financial Officer Clint Bowers provided additional color on margins and expenses. He said gross margin was 44.6%, down from 46.2% in 2024, “primarily due to higher citrus costs in the second half of the year.” Operating expenses increased to $2.2 million from $1.8 million, with Bowers attributing about half of the increase to “the normalization of executive compensation” tied to the public company transition, which he said is not expected “to repeat at the same level going forward.”
Bowers said operating income of $3.45 million was consistent with the prior year and net income was $3.5 million compared with $3.6 million in 2024. He added that adjusted for “the benefit for the receipt of insurance proceeds in 2024,” net income would have increased about 4% year-over-year.
For non-GAAP measures, Bowers reported adjusted EBITDA of $3.8 million and free cash flow of $3 million, with a “modest decline” in free cash flow driven by IPO-related expenses.
Fourth quarter: Seasonal softness, citrus costs weigh on margin
In the fourth quarter, Bowers said revenue was $2.9 million, up 4.4% year-over-year, while the business experienced “typical seasonal softness in same-store sales.” Gross margin was 42%, reflecting “higher citrus costs and a small inventory write-off.”
Operating expenses were about $550,000, up from $400,000, driven by executive compensation normalization, additional facility lease expense, and public company costs, according to Bowers. Operating income was $660,000 and GAAP net income was $676,000, which Bowers said was down year-over-year due to the margin pressure and higher operating expenses. He reported adjusted EBITDA of $719,000 and free cash flow of approximately $500,000 for the quarter.
Balance sheet and investment plans
Bowers said the company ended 2025 with about $2 million in cash and no debt. He added that in January the company received roughly $18 million net from IPO proceeds, bringing its cash balance to approximately $20 million with no debt.
Lonsdale-Hands said the company has “begun targeted capital investments” at its Dallas facility to increase capacity and improve automation, describing the projects as underway and expected to support future growth and operating efficiency “over time.”
2026 outlook: Early acceleration, but no formal guidance
Bowers said the company generally does not plan to issue guidance going forward, but provided “assistance for modeling purposes” following the first earnings report as a public company. With “a handful of days left in Q1,” he said revenue growth for the quarter is expected to accelerate to the mid-teens versus last year, adding that “at this stage” the growth is coming from existing customers.
For full-year 2026 comparability, Bowers noted several items that will affect financial reporting: as a C corporation, the company will begin reflecting federal income taxes on the income statement, as well as stock-based compensation and approximately $1 million in annual public company costs.
Customer expansion, store footprint, and geographic plans
Asked about discussions with new grocers, Lonsdale-Hands said conversations are “proceeding according to plan,” while noting that new customer onboarding involves “a time lag.” He said the company has been working with “a couple of them for years” and is “getting close,” adding, “we look forward to having one or two new customers on board soon.”
On how new accounts may ramp, Lonsdale-Hands said new customers likely will not start with multiple SKUs immediately, and instead may begin more gradually, referencing how the company ramped with H-E-B. He emphasized the products’ fit in the “freshly cut fruit” perimeter rather than the traditional “juice set,” calling it “incremental sales for the produce department.”
In response to a retail investor question, Lonsdale-Hands said Buda Juice is currently operating in Texas and expects to expand into “a couple other states” in the coming months from its Dallas facility. Later in the year, he said the company aims to expand to the East Coast by building a facility there to serve the eastern seaboard, followed potentially by a West Coast facility “probably the following year” to serve the western seaboard.
On current distribution, Lonsdale-Hands said the company is in approximately 350 to 400 stores. He identified H-E-B as the company’s main customer and said the company “just started with Kroger” in the region and expects to grow that business, adding that it has “more coming online,” without naming additional retailers.
Competitive differentiation and cold-chain “moat”
Lonsdale-Hands described the current competitive landscape as dominated by shelf-stable and processed products, including pasteurized, HPP, and UV offerings. He positioned Buda Juice’s “short shelf life” as a key differentiator that signals freshness to consumers, and said the company’s products generally carry “the price point of a pasteurized product.”
He also detailed Buda Juice’s cold-chain process, stating the company keeps product “at 35 degrees Fahrenheit” from farm through the consumer, including washing and sanitizing water and inbound ingredients. He argued that companies built around pasteurized production do not have to manage the same requirements and would face years of investment and expertise to replicate a comparable fresh production system.
Lonsdale-Hands also emphasized a profitability-first approach, saying the company intends to expand “and be profitable,” and referencing a recent board meeting where the executive chairman stressed that while expansion is planned, “we are gonna stay profitable.”
Brand strategy and focus on supermarkets over D2C
On brand strategy, Lonsdale-Hands said the company does not “spend a lot of money on marketing” and does not buy shelf space, noting it previously operated its own retail stores before pivoting into wholesale under both its own brand and white-label production. He described the company’s structure as including the “corporate identity” brand and “Buda Fresh” product lines, along with white-label offerings for other brands.
He said the model reduces credit risk and marketing spend because distribution center partners take ownership of product, and the company’s role is to maintain the cold chain and produce fresh products.
Management also pushed back on direct-to-consumer ambitions. Asked whether the company is considering selling online, Lonsdale-Hands said, “No, we’re not,” referencing past experience with an e-commerce approach that he said resulted in losses. He cited the complexities of shipping fresh, refrigerated items and said the company’s focus remains on grocery stores and supporting retailers that may deliver orders to consumers.
Operating leverage and expense scaling
Addressing operating leverage, Lonsdale-Hands said the company is “really happy with the margins right now,” and while scale could bring “a little compression,” he expects volume and efficiencies to offset it. He also said the company is investing in automation to reduce labor costs per ounce and is working to lower them further.
Bowers said automation initiatives should continue lowering per-pound costs. He also highlighted distribution leverage, noting that with a 12% increase in sales, distribution cost was “flat year-over-year,” because additional volume and SKUs can be added to the same trucks shipping to distribution centers. On SG&A, he said public company costs add overhead, but the “incremental cost from a G&A perspective is minimal” as the business scales, and management expects leverage over time.
About BUDA (NYSEAMERICAN:BUDA)
Buda Juice Inc is a juice category for the supermarket fresh produce department with its cold-crafted, UltraFresh(TM) citrus juices. Buda Juice Inc is based in DALLAS.
