How did Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL) perform in Q1 2026?

Newell Brands reported Q1 2026 net sales of $1.5 billion, a marginal 1.1% decline compared to the previous year. The company posted a net loss of $33 million, or $0.08 per diluted share. Despite the decline in core sales, Newell achieved improvements in profitability, with gross margin rising to 33.1% and operating margin increasing to 4.8%.

What drove Newell Brands' profitability improvement in Q1 2026?

The improvement in profitability was driven by Newell’s focus on operational efficiency, supply chain optimization, and ongoing restructuring efforts. These initiatives targeted overhead reduction and more disciplined pricing, which helped the company expand gross and operating margins despite a slight decline in sales.

How did Newell Brands' core sales perform in Q1 2026?

Newell’s core sales, which exclude the impact of acquisitions, divestitures, and currency fluctuations, declined by 3.5% in Q1 2026. However, the results exceeded internal forecasts, reflecting the company’s transition away from lower-margin product lines and its efforts to streamline operations.

What is the outlook for Newell Brands in 2026?

Newell Brands provided an optimistic update to its full-year guidance for 2026, signaling confidence in its ongoing restructuring and operational efficiency improvements. The company’s focus on margin expansion and disciplined pricing suggests a positive outlook despite the slight decline in Q1 sales.

How did Newell Brands' gross margin perform in Q1 2026?

Newell Brands’ gross margin improved to 33.1% in Q1 2026, up from 32.1% in the same period last year. This increase reflects the company’s focus on higher-margin products and cost-control efforts through operational efficiencies and supply chain optimization.

Newell Brands narrowly beats expectations as margins stabilize

Written by Liezl GambePublished May. 1 2026Last Updated May. 1 2026

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL) reported a resilient start to 2026, headlined by significant margin improvement and an optimistic update to its full-year guidance.

Net sales for the first quarter were $1.5 billion, a marginal 1.1% decline compared to the prior-year period.

While core sales—which exclude the impact of acquisitions, divestitures, and currency fluctuations—slipped 3.5%, the results were ahead of internal forecasts as the company navigates a transition away from lower-margin product lines.

The company’s focus on operational efficiency and supply chain optimization led to a healthy expansion in profitability.

Gross margin increased to 33.1%, up from 32.1% a year ago, while normalized operating margin grew to 4.8%.

These improvements were driven by the company’s ongoing restructuring efforts, which have targeted overhead reduction and more disciplined pricing across its portfolio of home and consumer brands.

On the bottom line, Newell reported a net loss of $33 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, a slight improvement from the $37 million loss recorded in the first quarter of 2025.

On a normalized basis, the diluted loss per share was $0.05.

Normalized EBITDA remained steady at $135 million, reflecting the company’s ability to maintain cash-generating power even amidst softer top-line demand.