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Alto Ingredients (ALTO)
NASDAQ:ALTO
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Alto Ingredients (ALTO) AI Stock Analysis

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ALTO

Alto Ingredients

(NASDAQ:ALTO)

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Neutral 59 (OpenAI - 5.2)
Rating:59Neutral
Price Target:
$4.50
▼(-8.91% Downside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:05/09/26
The score is primarily supported by improving financial performance (return to profitability, positive TTM operating/free cash flow, and manageable leverage) and a constructive earnings update with identifiable drivers (45Z credit capture and capacity/optimization projects). Offsetting these positives are weak near-term technicals (trading below short-term moving averages with soft momentum) and only middling valuation support given a ~22.9 P/E and no dividend yield data.
Positive Factors
Return to Profitability
Q1 2026 profit and adjusted EBITDA recovery reflect a tangible operational inflection. Durable profitability reduces reliance on external financing, supports debt reduction and reinvestment, and creates a firmer base for executing capacity and optimization projects over the next several quarters.
Negative Factors
Sustained Revenue Decline
A multi-year top-line contraction and ~20% TTM revenue decline weaken scale economics and constrain fixed-cost absorption. Persistent revenue erosion limits margin leverage, heightens sensitivity to volume shocks, and makes durable margin recovery more challenging absent sustained demand or new market wins.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Return to Profitability
Q1 2026 profit and adjusted EBITDA recovery reflect a tangible operational inflection. Durable profitability reduces reliance on external financing, supports debt reduction and reinvestment, and creates a firmer base for executing capacity and optimization projects over the next several quarters.
Read all positive factors

Alto Ingredients (ALTO) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

Alto Ingredients Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description
Alto Ingredients, Inc. produces and markets specialty alcohols and essential ingredients in the United States. The company operates in three segments: Marketing and Distribution, Pekin Production, and Other Production. It offers specialty alcohols...
How the Company Makes Money
Alto Ingredients makes money primarily by manufacturing and selling alcohol products and related co-products. Its core revenue stream is the sale of alcohols, which include (1) fuel-grade ethanol sold into transportation fuels markets and (2) spec...

Alto Ingredients Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:May 06, 2026
(Q1-2026)
|
% Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Aug 10, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed a positive operational and financial inflection: the company returned to profitability, achieved a meaningful adjusted EBITDA turnaround, improved ingredient returns and captured incremental revenue from exports, co-products and early 45Z credits. Management also outlined clear optimization and capital projects to lift capacity and qualify additional low-carbon gallons. Offsetting risks include temporary production curtailments and outages, higher energy and maintenance costs, dependence on external parties to lower carbon intensity and market/geopolitical volatility that could pressure margins. Overall, the positives (profitability, margin improvement, tangible project pipeline and tax-credit runway) outweigh the challenges, though execution and market dynamics will remain key.
Positive Updates
Return to Profitability
Net income attributable to common stockholders of $4.0 million in Q1 2026 versus a net loss of $12.0 million in Q1 2025, an improvement of $16.0 million. Adjusted EBITDA improved to $4.7 million from negative $4.4 million a year ago, a $9.1 million increase.
Negative Updates
Volume Curtailment and Outages
Overall volumes sold decreased 4% (3.7 million gallons), largely due to production curtailment at Pekin caused by disrupted river logistics during an extended cold spell and planned outages (Columbia outage and upcoming ICP outage). High-quality alcohol volumes sold decreased by 1.3 million gallons.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Negative
Return to Profitability
Net income attributable to common stockholders of $4.0 million in Q1 2026 versus a net loss of $12.0 million in Q1 2025, an improvement of $16.0 million. Adjusted EBITDA improved to $4.7 million from negative $4.4 million a year ago, a $9.1 million increase.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
The company guided to several quantifiable near‑term and 2026 priorities: targeting ~90 million gallons of combined Columbia/Pekin production to qualify for 45Z at $0.20/gal (≈$15 million net proceeds annually) — with $3.9 million of 45Z recognized in Q1 and the sale of 2025 credits expected to close this month — and plans to spend about $25 million in 2026 CapEx (Q1 CapEx $1 million) to complete projects including a second alcohol dock and dock repairs, a third CO2 storage tank, and a dry‑mill debottleneck that adds ~8% (≈5 million gallons/year) of capacity to be realized by Q4; financial metrics cited include Q1 consolidated net sales of $225 million (down $2 million), volumes sold down 4% (≈3.7 million gallons) while average price rose 4% to $2.00/gal, consolidated return on essential ingredients improving to 53.4% from 48.2%, gross profit $9.2 million versus a $1.8 million loss a year ago (≈$11 million swing), crush margin $0.17/gal vs $0.02/gal (≈$5.2 million benefit), adjusted EBITDA improving $9.1 million to $4.7 million (from –$4.4 million), net income $4.0 million ($0.05/sh) vs a $12 million loss ($0.16/sh) prior year, Q1 cash $20 million and operating cash flow $4 million, $16.6 million principal repaid on term debt (term loan balance $38.4 million) and total borrowing availability of $94 million ($29 million LOC, $65 million term facility); headwinds called out include $5.3 million higher gas/electric costs and $2.4 million higher repair & maintenance, while protein feed/corn oil added ~$2.2 million and high‑quality alcohol volumes fell 1.3 million gallons (reducing revenue by ~$1.4 million).

Alto Ingredients Financial Statement Overview

Summary
Financials show a meaningful near-term recovery: TTM profitability turned positive (net margin ~3.2%), gross margin improved to ~5.0%, and TTM operating cash flow (~$35.7M) and free cash flow (~$30.7M) are solidly positive. Balance sheet leverage is manageable and improving (debt-to-equity ~0.37). The key drag is sustained topline contraction (revenue down ~20% TTM and declining for several years) and still-thin margins, keeping results vulnerable to cyclicality and cost swings.
Income Statement
56
Neutral
Balance Sheet
68
Positive
Cash Flow
64
Positive
BreakdownTTMDec 2025Dec 2024Dec 2023Dec 2022Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue916.07M917.93M965.26M1.22B1.34B1.21B
Gross Profit37.05M26.84M9.72M15.65M-27.55M67.78M
EBITDA47.51M32.35M-26.76M2.60M-12.75M74.43M
Net Income29.29M13.34M-58.98M-28.00M-41.60M46.08M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets386.29M388.79M401.44M454.24M478.32M484.95M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments20.31M25.67M35.47M30.01M36.46M50.61M
Total Debt91.27M97.60M114.67M105.46M87.27M63.65M
Total Liabilities136.41M143.54M176.38M174.68M170.23M139.74M
Stockholders Equity249.88M245.24M225.06M279.56M308.09M345.21M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow30.71M8.65M-14.59M-7.51M-31.70M10.44M
Operating Cash Flow35.69M13.24M-3.52M22.02M6.05M26.82M
Investing Cash Flow-526.00K-7.43M-13.47M-33.03M-37.66M27.12M
Financing Cash Flow-40.69M-16.36M7.72M6.96M19.01M-40.00M

Alto Ingredients Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis Sentiment
Positive
Last Price4.94
Price Trends
50DMA
3.81
Positive
100DMA
3.23
Positive
200DMA
2.21
Positive
Market Momentum
MACD
0.29
Positive
RSI
62.51
Neutral
STOCH
64.47
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For ALTO, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 4.94 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 4.63, above the 50-day MA of 3.81, and above the 200-day MA of 2.21, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 0.29 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 62.51 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 64.47 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for ALTO.

Alto Ingredients Risk Analysis

Alto Ingredients disclosed 24 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Alto Ingredients reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks

Alto Ingredients Peers Comparison

Overall Rating
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (61)
Financial Indicators
Name
Overall Rating
Market Cap
P/E Ratio
ROE
Dividend Yield
Revenue Growth
EPS Growth
77
Outperform
$1.92B14.888.54%2.19%0.25%325.27%
76
Outperform
$1.65B6.3814.68%1.35%51.46%
67
Neutral
$1.20B8.60-2.02%-20.16%83.66%
61
Neutral
$10.43B7.12-0.05%2.87%2.86%-36.73%
59
Neutral
$361.86M21.196.00%-3.69%
58
Neutral
$1.12B-6.91-1.15%3.33%5.46%-125.23%
51
Neutral
$408.93M-7.45-7.28%314.95%58.49%
* Basic Materials Sector Average
Performance Comparison
Ticker
Company Name
Price
Change
% Change
ALTO
Alto Ingredients
4.67
3.81
444.92%
GEVO
Gevo
1.68
0.50
42.37%
GPRE
Green Plains
17.14
12.35
257.83%
IOSP
Innospec
78.15
-9.07
-10.39%
REX
Rex American
50.06
29.01
137.81%
SCL
Stepan Company
49.19
-4.70
-8.73%
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.Date of analysis: May 09, 2026