A maker of ready-to-drink protein shakes and sports nutrition, BellRing Brands sells the Premier Protein shakes found in grocery aisles and Dymatize powders favored by gym-goers. The company grew out of cereal maker Post Holdings, which bought the Premier Protein maker in 2013 and Dymatize in 2014, then spun the combined business off in 2022. Its name comes from a company tradition of ringing a bell at headquarters to celebrate successes, big and small.
Gross margin fell to 28.6% as higher input costs and a prior-year legal provision comparison drove a 46% operating income increase.
rose 46% only because the prior-year quarter carried a $68.1 million legal charge. rose 4% to $570.4 million, but fell 6.7 points to 28.6% as net product costs climbed $48.6 million. The underlying business is absorbing a cost squeeze that the headline profit increase conceals.
Key takeaways
rose 46% to $65.4 million, entirely because the prior-year quarter included a $68.1 million provision for legal matters; without that comparison, profit would have declined as higher costs consumed the sales gain.
contracted 6.7 points to 28.6%, driven by $48.6 million in higher net product costs—primarily raw material and manufacturing inflation—and a $6.7 million increase in advertising and promotion spending.
rose 4% to $570.4 million, with Dymatize sales up 27% on higher prices and international volumes, while Premier Protein edged up 1% on distribution gains.
Section summaries
Management's Discussion and Analysis
Q3 net sales rose 4% to $570.4M; operating profit up 46% aided by a prior-year $68.1M legal provision.
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Consolidated grew 4% to $570.4M in Q3, driven by a 27% surge in Dymatize sales from higher prices and international volumes, while Premier Protein edged up 1% on distribution gains.
Q3 increased 46% to $65.4M, largely because the prior-year period included a $68.1M legal provision; this was partly offset by $48.6M in higher net product costs and $6.7M in added advertising.
was $79.3 million for the quarter, up from $40.3 million a year ago, but for the first nine months cash from operations fell to $65.0 million as lower and higher investment absorbed cash.
The company repurchased 4.9 million shares for $134.5 million during the first nine months and ended the quarter with $300.0 million drawn on its at 5.62%, leaving $197.6 million in available borrowing capacity.
What changed
The $68.1 million legal provision that dominated Q3 FY2025 did not recur, but the underlying cost pressure flagged in Q2 FY2026 intensified: fell another 1.6 points sequentially to 28.6%, the third straight quarter below 30%.
Premier Protein volume growth returned to positive territory at 11% in Q2 FY2026 after being flat in Q1, but the Q3 narrative describes only a 1% sales uptick on distribution gains, suggesting volume momentum may have faded again.
The charge for a quality failure that depressed Q2 FY2026 by $11.3 million did not repeat, yet gross margin still declined sequentially, indicating that raw material and manufacturing inflation alone is now the dominant .
Share repurchases slowed: $134.5 million deployed in the first nine months of FY2026 compares with $267.6 million in the same period a year ago, and borrowings were reduced from $350.0 million at Q2 end to $300.0 million at Q3 end.
What to watch
Whether stabilizes above 28% or continues to decline as management warns that input-cost inflation and tariff-related pressures could have a materially adverse impact if unmitigated.
Whether Premier Protein volume growth sustains after the Q2 uptick to 11%, or whether the Q3 deceleration to a 1% sales increase signals that distribution gains are no longer offsetting lower pricing.
Whether recovers in the fourth quarter enough to fund the upcoming Joint Juice legal settlement payment without further increasing borrowings.
The pace of share repurchases relative to the $197.6 million in remaining capacity and the 6.00:1.00 total net , given of $1,135.3 million.
For the nine-month period, fell 18% to $209.9M as $94.3M in higher net product costs—including $11.3M for a quality-related ingredient charge and a $10.0M reserve—outweighed the absence of the prior-year legal provision.
declined to $65.0M in the first nine months, pressured by lower and higher investment, while the company repurchased 4.9M shares for $134.5M.
Liquidity remains supported by $197.6M in available borrowing capacity under the , and management expects positive operating cash flows to cover , debt service, and the upcoming legal settlement payment.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
Commodity risk centers on non-fat dry milk; interest-rate risk is split between fixed-rate Senior Notes and variable-rate Revolving Credit Facility borrowings.
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A hypothetical 10% adverse commodity price move would change the of the company’s commodity portfolio by approximately $12 million as of June 30, 2026.
The company states it does not hold or trade for speculation, so derivative value changes are effectively offset by changes in the underlying hedged transactions.
Foreign currency risk arises from a Euro-functional-currency subsidiary and from CAD-denominated sales by a U.S.-dollar-functional subsidiary, though the CAD exposure is not expected to significantly impact earnings or cash flows.
Fixed-rate debt consists of $840.0 million in 7.00% Senior Notes; a hypothetical 10% decrease in interest rates would have changed the of fixed-rate debt by approximately $12 million as of June 30, 2026.
Variable-rate borrowings under the were $300.0 million at 5.62% as of June 30, 2026; a hypothetical 10% increase in rates would have had an immaterial impact on and interest paid.
The information required under this Item 1 is set forth in Note 13 within “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” included in Part I, Item 1 of this report, which is incorporated herein by reference. For disclosure of environmental proceedings with a governmental…
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The information required under this Item 1 is set forth in Note 13 within “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” included in Part I, Item 1 of this report, which is incorporated herein by reference. For disclosure of environmental proceedings with a governmental entity as a party pursuant to Item 103(c)(3)(iii) of Regulation S-K, the Company has elected to disclose matters where the Company reasonably believes such proceeding would result in monetary sanctions, exclusive of interest and costs, of $1.0 million or more. Applying this threshold, there are no such environmental proceedings to disclose for the three months ended June 30, 2026.
In addition to the information set forth elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (the “Quarterly Report”), you should carefully consider the risk factors we previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on November 18, 2025, as of and for the…
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In addition to the information set forth elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (the “Quarterly Report”), you should carefully consider the risk factors we previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on November 18, 2025, as of and for the year ended September 30, 2025 (the “Annual Report”). You should also carefully consider the risk factor update we previously disclosed in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, filed with the SEC on May 5, 2026 (the "Previous Quarterly Report"). As of the date of this Quarterly Report, other than as set forth above, there have been no material changes to the risk factors previously disclosed in the Annual Report and the Previous Quarterly Report. These risks could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial also may impair our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.