Columbus McKinnon is asking shareholders to vote at its virtual 2026 annual meeting on August 14 on five items, including electing twelve directors, an advisory say-on-pay vote, ratifying Ernst & Young LLP, and increasing shares under its long-term incentive plan.
The company highlights a transformational year marked by completing the Kito Crosby acquisition and divesting its legacy U.S. power chain hoist and chain businesses. Net sales grew 24% in fiscal 2026 to about $1.2 billion, with orders up 20%, but results included a $230 million net loss driven largely by a $200 million non-cash goodwill impairment and significant deal-related costs.
Adjusted EBITDA reached $181 million, and free cash flow excluding $232 million of deal-related cash payments was $68 million. The proxy also details a strengthened governance framework, majority-independent board, CD&R’s preferred equity investment giving roughly 43% as-converted ownership and three board designees, and a pay-for-performance executive compensation philosophy.
Columbus McKinnon furnished slides from its Wells Fargo Industrials Conference outlining strategy, acquisition integration and financial targets. The company now addresses a $35B total addressable market and reports FY26 pro forma net sales of $2.034620B with pro forma Adjusted Gross Margin of 36.0% and pro forma Adjusted EBITDA Margin of 18.5%. Free Cash Flow Excluding Deal Costs for FY26 was $67.996M, highlighting underlying cash generation despite large acquisition and divestiture activity. Management targets $70M of annual net run rate cost synergies by FY29 and provides FY27 guidance with sales of $2.09B, Adjusted EBITDA of $400M and Adjusted EBITDA Margin of 19.2%. Capital allocation emphasizes debt reduction, with Credit Agreement Net Debt of $2.259385B and a Credit Agreement Net Leverage Ratio of 5.1x, and a long‑term leverage target of under 2x.
Columbus McKinnon filed an 8-K providing audited historical financial statements for its newly acquired subsidiary Kito Crosby Limited for the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024. Kito Crosby reported 2025 net sales of $1,143.9 million, operating income of $144.6 million and net income attributable to shareholders of $14.5 million. Total assets were $1,516.4 million, funded mainly by a First Lien term loan of $980.1 million and total equity of $179.4 million. Cash from operating activities was $32.2 million in 2025, while interest expense, net, was $82.9 million and the effective tax rate was elevated at 73.92%. The company cautions that these stand-alone Kito Crosby figures are historical, were prepared before the February 3, 2026 all-cash acquisition closed, and do not represent or project the combined company’s future consolidated results.
Columbus McKinnon Corporation provides its annual overview as a global designer and manufacturer of intelligent motion and material-handling solutions. The company highlights the completed Kito Crosby Acquisition, which adds more than 4,000 employees, 40 sites and a broad portfolio of lifting and securement consumables, cranes and technology solutions across North America, EMEA, Asia Pacific and Latin America.
For fiscal 2026, net sales totaled $1.19 billion, with $668.3 million from the U.S. and $525.1 million from non-U.S. markets. Hoists generated 48% of net sales, while lifting and securement hardware contributed 13%. Backlog rose to $519.6 million, up from $322.5 million a year earlier, largely due to Kito Crosby orders.
The report details a highly leveraged capital structure following the acquisition, including a $1.65 billion Term Loan B facility, $900 million of 7.125% senior secured notes due 2033 and a $500 million revolving credit facility. It also emphasizes human capital, noting approximately 7,300 employees worldwide and improved workplace safety, with an incident rate of 0.38 versus 0.54 in the prior year, alongside extensive risk-factor discussion on macroeconomic conditions, integration challenges, raw material volatility, tariffs, supply chain constraints and increased international exposure.
Columbus McKinnon reported strong growth for fiscal 2026 but a large reported loss driven by deal-related items. Full-year net sales were $1,193,451,000, up 23.9% from $963,027,000, boosted by the February acquisition of Kito Crosby and a 7.3% increase in Legacy CMCO net sales.
For the fourth quarter, net sales rose 77.3% to $437,829,000, but the company recorded a net loss attributable to the company of $238,230,000 and a net loss margin of 54.4%, including a non-cash goodwill impairment of $200,000,000, inventory step-up expense and significant transaction costs, partly offset by a $103,306,000 gain on a required divestiture.
Adjusted metrics were much healthier: Q4 Adjusted EBITDA was $68,731,000 with a 15.7% margin, and full-year Adjusted EBITDA was $181,373,000 with a 15.2% margin. The company ended the year with a Credit Agreement Net Leverage Ratio of 5.1x and total liquidity of $561,200,000. For fiscal 2027, it guided to net sales of $2.05 billion to $2.12 billion, Adjusted EBITDA of $390,000,000 to $410,000,000 and Adjusted EPS of $1.70 to $1.90.
Columbus McKinnon director Aziz Aghili increased his direct holdings through an equity compensation event. On June 1, 2026, he exercised 3,283.085 deferred stock units, receiving the same number of shares of common stock at a stated price of $0.00 per share.
Each deferred stock unit represented a contingent right to one share of Columbus McKinnon common stock, and the deferred shares were delivered under the company’s plan. Following this transaction, Aghili directly holds 19,536.085 shares of common stock. The activity reflects a conversion of deferred equity rather than any open‑market purchase or sale.
Columbus McKinnon senior vice president, general counsel and secretary Alan S. Korman reported an update to his equity holdings. Following these entries, he directly holds 49,413.198 shares of common stock, including 7,838.119 restricted shares subject to future vesting. A grant of 16,140 non-qualified stock options with a $15.16 exercise price reached its expiration date on May 23, 2026, leaving no options from this grant outstanding.
Columbus McKinnon Corp Executive VP Finance and CFO Gregory P. Rustowicz reported an update to his equity holdings. A grant of 28,333 Non-Qualified Stock Options with a $15.16 exercise price expired on May 23, 2026, leaving no options from this grant outstanding.
After these changes, he directly holds 91,874.7100 shares of common stock. This includes 10,725.917 restricted shares subject to forfeiture, of which 1,685.825 are scheduled to fully vest on May 20, 2027, and 9,040.092 are scheduled to vest 50% per year over two years beginning May 19, 2027, contingent on continued employment.
Columbus McKinnon Corp senior vice president and general counsel Alan S. Korman reported a routine tax-related share disposition. On 5/22/2026, 552 shares of common stock, valued at $14.88 per share, were withheld to satisfy tax obligations when 1,940.004 restricted stock units became fully vested. After this tax-withholding disposition, Korman directly held 49,413.198 common shares, including 7,838.119 unvested restricted shares subject to future vesting conditions.
COLUMBUS MCKINNON CORP executive Appal Chintapalli reported a small, routine tax-related share disposition. On the vesting of 1,724.448 restricted stock units, 491 shares of common stock were delivered at $14.88 per share to cover tax withholding obligations. After this transaction, he directly holds 36,175.426 shares. The filing also notes additional unvested restricted stock units scheduled to vest in future years, subject to continued employment.