AdvanSix Provides Update on Plant Production Rates

Rhea-AI Summary

AdvanSix (ASIX) has experienced a process-based operational disruption at its Frankford, Pennsylvania manufacturing site, leading to reduced phenol and acetone production at multiple facilities. The company is focused on the safe return of operations and aims to mitigate the impact on customers. The incident is expected to have an $18 to $23 million unfavorable impact on pre-tax income in the first quarter of 2024. However, it did not materially impact the fourth quarter of 2023 results. AdvanSix will provide further financial results and outlook during a conference call on February 16th.

Positive

• None.

Negative

• The operational disruption is expected to have an unfavorable financial impact on pre-tax income in the first quarter of 2024, potentially affecting shareholder confidence and stock performance.

Market Research Analyst

The operational disruption at AdvanSix's Frankford facility is a significant event that warrants close examination from a market perspective. The reduction in phenol and acetone production, key materials in various industrial processes, could have ripple effects throughout the supply chain. The company's proactive approach to manage the situation, including accelerating maintenance work, is indicative of a strategic response to minimize downtime and restore full operational capacity.

However, the projected pre-tax income impact of $18 to $23 million is substantial and may concern investors regarding short-term profitability. It is essential to assess the company's historical performance during similar events, if any and compare the projected financial impact to prior disruptions. This incident also presents an opportunity to evaluate the company's resilience and agility in managing unforeseen operational challenges.

Financial Analyst

From a financial analysis standpoint, the anticipated unfavorable impact on pre-tax income necessitates a review of AdvanSix's balance sheet and cash flow statements. The key question is whether the company has sufficient liquidity and financial flexibility to absorb this shock. Additionally, the incident's timing relative to the fiscal quarter's end could influence the severity of its impact on financial results.

Investors should also consider the company's guidance and past earnings to contextualize the $18 to $23 million figure. It's crucial to understand the proportion of this impact relative to AdvanSix's overall revenue and net income. This event might prompt a reevaluation of the company's risk management practices and potentially its insurance coverage adequacy for such operational risks.

Supply Chain Analyst

The disruption at AdvanSix's manufacturing site has broader implications for the supply chain, especially for industries reliant on phenol and acetone. The company's role as a supplier and the interconnectedness of the chemical industry suggest that this event could lead to supply shortages or increased prices for these chemicals. Companies downstream might need to seek alternative suppliers, which could lead to increased competition and potential supply chain bottlenecks.

Analyzing the company's past supply chain resilience and its strategies for mitigating such disruptions can provide insights into how quickly AdvanSix can recover. Furthermore, understanding the geographical distribution of phenol and acetone suppliers can help assess the potential for regional versus global impact. It is also worth exploring the company's communication and collaboration with its customers during this period, as this can affect long-term business relationships and customer loyalty.

PARSIPPANY, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AdvanSix (NYSE: ASIX) announced that it has experienced a process-based operational disruption at its Frankford, Pennsylvania manufacturing site. As a result, phenol and acetone production at the Frankford facility, as well as production at its Hopewell and Chesterfield, Virginia facilities, have been reduced. There have been no health, safety and environmental issues associated with the event.

“We are keenly focused on the safe return of our operations to target rates and working collaboratively with our customers to mitigate the impact of our reduced output on their operations,” said Erin Kane, president and CEO of AdvanSix. “We are confident in our action plan at Frankford and our ability to enable a return to planned utilization rates across our integrated value chain by the end of January. We have also taken the opportunity to pull forward planned maintenance work at our Hopewell facility originally scheduled for later in the first quarter.”

The Company expects to incur an approximately $18 to $23 million unfavorable impact to pre-tax income in the first quarter of 2024, including the unfavorable impact of fixed cost absorption, lost sales, and incremental cost to purchase replacement product.

The unplanned interruption did not have a material impact on fourth quarter 2023 results. The Company will further discuss its fourth quarter and full year 2023 financial results and outlook during the previously scheduled conference call with investors on Friday, February 16^th at 9:00 a.m. ET.

About AdvanSix

AdvanSix is a diversified chemistry company that produces essential materials for our customers in a wide variety of end markets and applications that touch people’s lives. Our integrated value chain of our five U.S.-based manufacturing facilities plays a critical role in global supply chains and enables us to innovate and deliver essential products for our customers across building and construction, fertilizers, agrochemicals, plastics, solvents, packaging, paints, coatings, adhesives, electronics and other end markets. Guided by our core values of Safety, Integrity, Accountability and Respect, AdvanSix strives to deliver best-in-class customer experiences and differentiated products in the industries of nylon solutions, chemical intermediates, and plant nutrients. More information on AdvanSix can be found at http://www.advansix.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This release contains certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that our management intends, expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," “outlook,” "project," "strategy," "intend," "plan," "target," "goal," "may," "will," "should" and "believe" and other variations or similar terminology and expressions. Although we believe forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond our control and difficult to predict, which may cause the actual results or performance of the Company to be materially different from any future results or performance expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: general economic and financial conditions in the U.S. and globally; the potential effects of inflationary pressures, labor market shortages and supply chain issues; instability or volatility in financial markets or other unfavorable economic or business conditions caused by geopolitical concerns, including as a result of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the conflict in Israel and Gaza, and the possible expansion of such conflicts; the effect of the foregoing on our customers’ demand for our products and our suppliers’ ability to manufacture and deliver our raw materials, including implications of reduced refinery utilization in the U.S.; our ability to sell and provide our goods and services; the ability of our customers to pay for our products; any closures of our and our customers’ offices and facilities; risks associated with increased phishing, compromised business emails and other cybersecurity attacks, data privacy incidents and disruptions to our technology infrastructure; risks associated with employees working remotely or operating with a reduced workforce; risks associated with our indebtedness including compliance with financial and restrictive covenants, and our ability to access capital on reasonable terms, at a reasonable cost, or at all, due to economic conditions or otherwise; the impact of scheduled turnarounds and significant unplanned downtime and interruptions of production or logistics operations as a result of mechanical issues or other unanticipated events such as fires, severe weather conditions, natural disasters, pandemics and geopolitical conflicts and related events; price fluctuations, cost increases and supply of raw materials; our operations and growth projects requiring substantial capital; growth rates and cyclicality of the industries we serve including global changes in supply and demand; failure to develop and commercialize new products or technologies; loss of significant customer relationships; adverse trade and tax policies; extensive environmental, health and safety laws that apply to our operations; hazards associated with chemical manufacturing, storage and transportation; litigation associated with chemical manufacturing and our business operations generally; inability to acquire and integrate businesses, assets, products or technologies; protection of our intellectual property and proprietary information; prolonged work stoppages as a result of labor difficulties or otherwise; failure to maintain effective internal controls; our ability to declare and pay quarterly cash dividends and the amounts and timing of any future dividends; our ability to repurchase our common stock and the amount and timing of any future repurchases; disruptions in supply chain, transportation and logistics; potential for uncertainty regarding qualification for tax treatment of our spin-off; fluctuations in our stock price; and changes in laws or regulations applicable to our business. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those envisaged by such forward-looking statements. We identify the principal risks and uncertainties that affect our performance in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the risk factors in Part 1, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as updated in subsequent reports filed with the SEC.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240118314184/en/

Media

Janeen Lawlor

(973) 526-1615

janeen.lawlor@advansix.com

Investors

Adam Kressel

(973) 526-1700

adam.kressel@advansix.com

Source: AdvanSix

What is the ticker symbol for AdvanSix?

The ticker symbol for AdvanSix is ASIX.

What facilities have been affected by the operational disruption?

The Frankford, Pennsylvania manufacturing site, as well as the Hopewell and Chesterfield, Virginia facilities, have experienced reduced production.

When will AdvanSix provide further financial results and outlook?

AdvanSix will discuss its fourth quarter and full year 2023 financial results and outlook during a conference call on February 16th at 9:00 a.m. ET.

What impact is the operational disruption expected to have on pre-tax income in the first quarter of 2024?

The disruption is anticipated to result in an approximately $18 to $23 million unfavorable impact on pre-tax income in the first quarter of 2024.

Did the operational disruption have a material impact on the fourth quarter of 2023 results?

No, the unplanned interruption did not have a material impact on the fourth quarter of 2023 results.