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LITTELFUSE INC /DE (LFUS)·Q3 2025 Earnings Summary

Executive Summary

  • Q3 2025 delivered solid growth with net sales of $624.6M (+10.1% YoY) and adjusted diluted EPS of $2.95 (+9% YoY), modestly expanding operating performance despite higher stock/variable comp; adjusted EBITDA margin was 21.5% (-20 bps YoY) .
  • Results modestly beat Wall Street consensus: revenue $624.6M vs $623.7M estimate* and adjusted EPS $2.95 vs $2.80 estimate*; beat driven by strong Electronics (passives +19% organic; semis +5% organic) and steady Industrial, offset by softer Transportation mix .
  • Q4 2025 guidance: net sales $570–$590M, adjusted EPS $2.40–$2.60, adjusted tax rate 22%; management highlighted typical seasonality and mixed end markets, with strong backlog supporting YoY growth .
  • Strategic catalyst: Littelfuse announced the acquisition of Basler Electric (~$350M; ~13.5x 2025E EBITDA, accretive to adjusted EPS in 2026), broadening exposure to grid/utility, power generation and data centers .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

  • Electronics segment strength: sales +18% (+12% organic) with passive products +19% organic and semis +5% organic; segment adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 24.0% (+140 bps) .
  • Data center momentum: “data center was a meaningful driver of overall growth,” and design wins are up “more than 2x YoY,” reflecting wins across hyperscalers, cloud, and infrastructure customers .
  • Cash generation and balance sheet: Q3 operating cash flow $146.9M and free cash flow $131.2M; cash and equivalents $814.7M; consolidated net leverage ratio 0.9x .

What Went Wrong

  • Transportation margins pressured to 16.8% (-220 bps YoY) on lower volume, higher stock/variable comp, and unfavorable tariff timing; commercial vehicle -3% organic; auto sensors -18% organic despite passenger car products +4% organic .
  • Industrial margin compression to 20.7% (-310 bps YoY) on unfavorable mix and higher compensation, though segment sales still grew +4% organically .
  • Power semiconductors remained soft YoY; while sequential improvement occurred, management acknowledged ongoing execution work and the need to sharpen strategy and operations under new leadership (Dr. Karim Hamed) .

Financial Results

MetricQ1 2025Q2 2025Q3 2025
Revenue ($USD Millions)$554.3 $613.4 $624.6
GAAP Diluted EPS ($)$1.75 $2.30 $2.77
Adjusted Diluted EPS ($)$2.19 $2.85 $2.95
Operating Margin (%)12.7% 15.1% 15.6%
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%)20.1% 21.4% 21.5%
Estimates vs Actual (Q3 2025)Consensus*Actual
Revenue ($USD Millions)$623.7*$624.6
Primary EPS ($)$2.80*$2.95
# of Estimates (EPS / Revenue)5 / 5*—

Values retrieved from S&P Global.

Segment Net Sales ($USD Thousands)Q3 2024Q3 2025YoY %
Electronics$304,188 $357,457 +17.5%
Transportation$171,381 $171,311 ~0%
Industrial$91,821 $95,872 +4.4%
Total$567,390 $624,640 +10.1%
Segment Profitability (Q3)ElectronicsTransportationIndustrial
Operating Income ($USD Thousands, Q3 2024)$48,891 $23,485 $17,711
Operating Income ($USD Thousands, Q3 2025)$63,640 $20,187 $16,918
Operating Margin (Q3 2024)16.1% 13.7% 19.3%
Operating Margin (Q3 2025)17.8% 11.8% 17.6%
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions, Q3 2024)$68.9 $32.6 $21.8
Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions, Q3 2025)$85.8 $28.7 $19.8
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (Q3 2024)22.6% 19.0% 23.8%
Adjusted EBITDA Margin (Q3 2025)24.0% 16.8% 20.7%
KPIsQ3 2025
Operating Cash Flow ($USD Millions)$146.9
Free Cash Flow ($USD Millions)$131.2
Cash and Cash Equivalents ($USD Thousands)$814,733
Net Debt ($USD Millions)$463.2
Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio0.9x

Guidance Changes

MetricPeriodPrevious GuidanceCurrent GuidanceChange
Net SalesQ4 2025—$570–$590M New
Adjusted Diluted EPSQ4 2025—$2.40–$2.60 New
Adjusted Effective Tax RateQ4 2025—22% New
Amortization ExpenseFY 2025$58M (Q2 guide) $59M (Q3 guide) Raised
Interest ExpenseFY 2025$35M (Q2 guide) $34M (Q3 guide) Lowered
Capital ExpendituresFY 2025$90–$95M (Q2 guide) $80–$85M (Q3 guide) Lowered
DividendQ3/4 2025$0.75/share (raised 7% in Q2) $0.75/share payable Dec 4, 2025 Maintained

Notes: Q4 EPS guide assumes a $0.40 headwind from stock/variable comp and ~$0.15 tax-rate headwind; organic growth at Q4 midpoint ~5%, with ~2 points from Dortmund acquisition .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

TopicPrevious Mentions (Q1 2025)Previous Mentions (Q2 2025)Current Period (Q3 2025)Trend
Data center / AI factoriesKey design wins; content across protection, power distribution, cooling; engagement with hyperscalers New wins in liquid cooling/on-board/power distribution; pipeline accelerating “Meaningful driver” of Q3 growth; design wins >2x YoY; deep engagement with hyperscalers building gigawatt-scale AI factories Strengthening
Tariffs / macroMitigation playbook; neutral impact expected in Q2 Tariff timing tailwind in Q2 to reverse in Q3 ~$3M Transportation headwind from tariff timing; neutral price/tariff impact assumed in Q4; dynamics “largely stabilized” Normalizing
Power semiconductorsSoft demand; focus on strategy/exec improvement Soft YoY; passive/protection offset; order improvement Sequential improvement; still down YoY; new leader (Dr. Karim Hamed) to sharpen execution Early improvement
Transportation sensorsPlanned pruning; segment margins expanded despite soft demand Passenger car +3% organic; CV +5% organic; margins strong Sensors -18% organic; passenger car products +4% organic; margins pressured Mixed; sensors weak
Industrial mixStrong renewables/data center/HVAC growth; margin expansion 17% organic; +610 bps margin expansion 4% organic; margin down 310 bps on mix/higher comp Moderating growth; mix drag

Management Commentary

  • “We delivered strong revenue growth… while our adjusted diluted earnings exceeded the high end of our guidance range reflecting solid execution amid mixed end market conditions.” — Greg Henderson, CEO .
  • “Data center was a meaningful driver of overall growth… design wins are up more than 2x YoY.” — Greg Henderson .
  • “Electronics… sales were up 18%… passive products were up 19% organically… semiconductor products increased 5%… Adjusted EBITDA margin of 24% was up 140 bps.” — Abhi Khandelwal, CFO .
  • “Transportation… adjusted EBITDA margin of 16.8% was down 220 bps… impacted by lower volume, higher stock/variable compensation, and unfavorable tariff timing.” — Abhi Khandelwal .
  • “We are excited to announce the Basler Electric acquisition… $350M value ($320M net of tax benefits)… ~13.5x 2025E EBITDA… accretive to adjusted EPS in 2026.” — Abhi Khandelwal .

Q&A Highlights

  • Power semis: Sequential improvement Q2→Q3, still down YoY; strategic importance within safe/efficient energy transfer; execution focus underway .
  • Compensation impact: Q4 guide embeds ~$0.40 headwind from variable comp normalization (teams paid at target in 2025 vs 2024) and smaller stock comp effect; normalization expected in 2026 .
  • Tariff timing: $6M tailwind in Q2 reversed to headwind in Q3 ($3M in Transportation); Q4 assumes neutral price/tariff impact .
  • Data center pipeline: High single-digit contribution to company-level growth; faster design-win-to-revenue conversion vs auto/industrial .
  • Transportation sensors: Ongoing realignment; core passenger products performing reasonably despite EV slowness; sensors weaker profitability .

Estimates Context

  • Q3 2025 beat: Adjusted diluted EPS $2.95 vs $2.80 consensus*; revenue $624.6M vs $623.7M consensus*; both on 5 estimates* (EPS/revenue). Drivers: Electronics passives/protection strength and operational leverage, partially offset by higher stock/variable comp and tariff timing headwinds .
  • Outlook vs models: Q4 guide implies typical seasonality and continued mixed end markets, but backlog supports YoY growth; FY modeling items adjusted (lower capex and interest expense) could lift 2025 FCF and 2026 EPS trajectories .

Values retrieved from S&P Global.

Key Takeaways for Investors

  • Quarter quality: Broad-based top-line growth with an EPS beat vs consensus; margin resilience despite compensation/tariff timing headwinds — supportive for near-term sentiment and estimate fine-tuning .
  • Segment setup: Electronics momentum (passives/protection) continues; watch Transportation sensor pruning and tariff normalization; Industrial growth intact but mix weighed Q3 margins .
  • Q4 guide: Seasonal downtick but YoY growth; explicit comp/tax headwinds baked in — reduces risk of negative surprises; backlog solid .
  • Strategic catalyst: Basler Electric acquisition expands grid/data center capabilities and industrial exposure; accretive to adjusted EPS in 2026; modest leverage increase to ~1.4x at close .
  • Cash/FCF strength: Q3 FCF $131.2M; cash $814.7M; net leverage 0.9x — ample capacity for organic investment, M&A, and shareholder returns (dividend maintained at $0.75) .
  • Power semis inflection watch: Sequential improvement with new leadership; execution and go-to-market realignment could unlock medium-term profitability and growth .
  • Data center exposure: Strengthening design-win momentum and faster revenue conversion vs other end markets — a developing multi-year growth vector .

Notes:

  • Company did not have a separately listed “8-K 2.02” filing in the period; the Q3 earnings press release and call transcript were used as primary sources .
  • Non-GAAP adjustments impacted EPS by $0.18 in Q3 (FX, restructuring/other) and adjusted EBITDA margin was 21.5% (-20 bps YoY) .