Valmont Industries, Inc.

and one brief follow-up question and return to the queue. If anyone should require operator assistance during the conference, please press star zero on your telephone keypad. Please note this conference is being recorded. I will now turn the conference over to your host, Renee Campbell, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations and Treasurer. Ms. Campbell, you may begin.

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. With me today are Abner Applebaum, President and Chief Executive Officer, Tom Lavorie, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Tim Francis, Chief Accounting Officer. Earlier this morning, we issued a press release announcing our first quarter 2025 results. That press release and the presentation for today's webcast are available on the investors page of our website at valmont.com. A replay of the webcast will be available later this morning. We'll begin today's call with prepared remarks and then open it up for questions. Please note that this call is subject to our disclosure on forward-looking statements, which is outlined on slide two of the presentation and will be read in full after Q&A. With that, I'd now like to turn the call over to Abner.

Thank you, Renee. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. I'd like to start with first quarter highlights summarized on slide four. Demand across most of our markets has remained resilient amid a dynamic macro environment. Secular megatrends, such as the energy transition and infrastructure investment, continue to create meaningful opportunities for our business. While pockets of the business are more exposed to economic pressures, overall order activity and volume growth remain healthy as reflected in our growing backlog of $1.5 billion. We're confident in our ability to manage through disruptions while positioning the business to capture long-term growth. While consolidated net sales were down slightly, they increased modestly on a constant currency basis with both operating margins and earnings per share remaining stable. Our financial performance is a result of our disciplined execution against our strategic priorities. We've streamlined the organization to operate more efficiently, and our operational and commercial excellence initiative are delivering tangible results. Driven by a continuous improvement culture, we're strengthening our position to grow as certain markets recover. Importantly, our market leadership and commitment to deliver premier quality and service to our customers continues to set us apart in infrastructure and agriculture. We're also actively mitigating near-term tariffs. with 24 manufacturing and 18 coatings facilities across the United States, we're well positioned to meet domestic demand. A few years ago, we began implementing a local for local supply chain strategy to better serve our global customers, and that work is paying off, helping to reduce our exposure today. We're also seeing success from other proactive efforts across the business. Tom will share more detail later in the call. Turning to slide five, I'd like to share an update on a few of our 2025 critical objectives that I introduced last quarter. We're executing our strategy to catch the global infrastructure wave by expanding capabilities and optimizing capacity across our footprint. In the first quarter, we invested approximately $30 million in CapEx with a significant portion directed towards increasing utility production. Our expansion in Brenham, Texas is progressing as planned and is expected to be fully operational by year end. We're prioritizing high return capacity expansion investments, scaling up our existing facilities to operate with greater efficiency and capture future growth. This quarter, we continued equipment upgrades in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and also started new productivity investments at our manufacturing facilities in Florida and Kansas. Our second objective is positioning our agriculture business for long-term growth. Lower crop prices have pressured global ag markets and their farm income since late 2023. While conditions remain challenged, we're using this time to enhance our competitive strength, including dealer excellence, production and aftermarket capabilities, and customer-centric innovation. These efforts will position the business to emerge stronger when the cycle recovers. As an example, expanding our aftermarket parts business is a key priority, delivering high margin revenue. Our new e-commerce platform enhances the customer experience with faster access to a broader range of parts and seamless direct ordering. Our new AgTech platform, AgSense 365, has received positive early feedback for its performance and ease of use. We're very pleased with customer adoption rates, and initial benefits are tracking in line with our growth plans. As the market leader, investing in digital tools for more precise irrigation is essential. We're helping growth increase productivity with fewer inputs, improving yields, and resource efficiency. We're also allocating capital and talent with discipline and our focus on ensuring resources are directed where they can have the greatest impact for our customers and our business. Our people are at the center of our success. Investing in their safety, well-being, and talent development is essential to our future. Our progress on these five objectives reflects the dedication of our global Valmont team. I'm proud of what we achieved together. As we continue to execute, 2025 is shaping up to be a pivotal year that positions us for long-term success. Now turning to slide six for an infrastructure market update, starting with utility, our largest product line. The business continues to show healthy volume growth driven by long-term demand drivers such as rising energy usage and the need to replace aging infrastructure. Our focus on value-based pricing and commercial execution has driven strong performance in a capacity-constrained environment. The capacity additions mentioned earlier will begin ramping in the second half of this year, setting us up well for continued growth. Moving to lighting and transportation. US transportation demand remains strong. Lighting markets have been soft, but we're starting to see stabilizing order trends. Consistent with historical patterns, roughly 40% of total L&T sales are international, where we're expecting mixed regional market performance this year. Our coatings business serves a variety of markets and typically follows industrial production and regional GDP trends while also supporting our internal demand. Growth in North America was offset by a softness in international markets. Telecommunications sales are growing as carrier spending has recovered from softer 2024 levels. Our components business leads the market with exceptional customer service and a product portfolio that aligns closely with carrier programs. Our geographic presence is a key competitive advantage with 11 strategically located warehouses enabling next-day delivery to most of the U.S. market. Looking ahead, telecom has a positive long-term outlook supported by ongoing network expansion, modernization efforts, and the need for greater connectivity. In solar, as expected, sales declined this quarter reflecting softer market conditions and our strategic decision to exit lower return projects. In the U.S., policy uncertainty is impacting market activity. However, current European regulations are driving industry innovation and the adoption of agrivoltaic application that I mentioned last quarter. Our team remains focused and agile in advocating this dynamic environment. Across the portfolio, we serve customers and markets aligned with multi-year circular megatrons. Our capacity and capability investments address the growing complexity of customer demands where our expertise brings the most value and impact. It reinforces our market leadership while positioning us for long-term growth. Turning to slide seven for an agriculture market update. North American market conditions remain challenged. Corn and soybean prices, which are key indicators of demand, are projected to decline mid-single digits this year. These factors, along with ongoing trade policy uncertainty, are causing farmers to be more cautious with capital investment decisions. In the meantime, our Valley Dealer Network is working closely with growers to ensure we're ready to meet their irrigation needs as the cycle improves. We're leaning into our strategy to grow strategic account partnership by deepening relationship with large growers. These collaborations reflect our unique strength and ability to deliver meaningful, scalable solutions. In Brazil, our largest international market, grower sentiment is improving. We're encouraged by early signs of market stabilization, including a return to volume growth in the first quarter. Earlier this month, We welcomed our resilient dealers to our Nebraska facilities to share best practices, align on priorities, and strengthen collaboration. I was once again reminded of the impressive industry knowledge and customer relationships of our dealers, which reflects their deep passion for the business. The team is energized. They're looking forward to the annual AgriShow next week and remain confident in the long-term opportunities in the region. International projects are a bright spot for our business. In the Middle East, demand is strong as nations place the highest priority on building sustainable, resilient food systems. The $45 million project we previously announced is on track, and our robust pipeline in the region continues to grow. To meet rising demand, our Dubai manufacturing facility has nearly doubled its output from a year ago. Our strong dealer network, and proven ability to execute large-scale projects gives us competitive advantage. We're proud to play a vital role in addressing the global need for a secure, sustainable food supply. Our irrigation solutions help growers do more with less, demonstrating Valmont's ability to deliver meaningful value. In summary, we've had a good start to 2025 despite a dynamic economic backdrop and the actions we're taking to improve performance give us confidence in delivering strong results this year and beyond. I'll now turn the call over to Tom to review our first quarter financial results in 2025 outlook.