Core Molding Pivots for Growth Beyond Cyclical Headwinds

COLUMBUS, Ohio – March 10, 2026 – Core Molding Technologies, Inc. (NYSE American: CMT) has demonstrated a masterclass in strategic resilience, navigating a challenging 2025 by securing significant new business and aggressively investing in diversification, even as its largest market faced a downturn. The engineered materials specialist reported a 9.5% decline in full-year net sales for 2025, but a closer look reveals a company successfully executing a long-term growth plan that is already beginning to bear fruit.

While full-year 2025 net sales fell to $273.8 million from $302.4 million in the prior year, the fourth quarter showed a sharp 19.5% increase in total net sales to $74.7 million, largely fueled by tooling revenue. The results paint a picture of a company weathering a cyclical storm in its primary market while simultaneously planting the seeds for substantial future expansion in new sectors and geographies.

“Fiscal 2025 was intensely focused on our Invest For Growth Must Win Battle – and we delivered as stated,” said David Duvall, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We won $63 million in business, the majority of which was new business for Core, and over 65% of these new wins are outside our largest end markets, Truck and Powersports.”

Navigating the Truck Sector Trough

The primary headwind for Core Molding in 2025 was the well-documented weakness in the medium and heavy-duty truck sector, an industry that accounts for 44% of the company's product sales. This led to a 20.2% decrease in annual product sales, a figure that underscores the sector's impact.

Alex Panda, the Company’s EVP and Chief Financial Officer, addressed the decline directly. “As expected, fiscal 2025 revenues declined 9.5%, primarily due to weakness in the Truck sector,” he commented. However, Panda highlighted the company’s operational strength, noting, “Gross margins of 17.4%, within our previously communicated range, reflected stability despite lower volumes and operating leverage pressure.”

This ability to maintain margins within the long-term target of 17% to 19% and generate over $19 million in operating cash flow speaks to the company's disciplined management. The outlook for the truck sector is also improving. Industry analysis from firms like ACT Research suggests the market is rebalancing after the 2024-2025 downturn. While a full-throated recovery isn't guaranteed, early 2026 has seen firmer rate floors and improved order activity, lending credibility to Core Molding's expectation that the truck cycle will begin to recover in the second half of 2026 and gain momentum through 2027.

A Strategic Pivot to Diversification

The cornerstone of Core Molding’s strategy is its successful push to diversify away from an over-reliance on trucking and powersports. The $63 million in new business secured in 2025 is a testament to this effort, with over two-thirds of it coming from new and emerging markets. These are not just minor gains; they represent strategic entries into high-growth verticals.

Detailed research reveals these wins include sophisticated applications such as inner bed panels for a new electric pickup truck, components for satellite tracking systems, and other specialized transportation products. This move into the electric vehicle supply chain is particularly noteworthy, positioning Core Molding to capitalize on the industry's demand for lightweight and durable composite materials.

The company's business development pipeline remains robust, with approximately $220 million in identified opportunities. The goal for 2026 is to secure another $50 million in new program awards, further cementing this diversification. Most of the revenue from the 2025 wins is expected to materialize in the second half of 2026 and throughout 2027, aligning perfectly with the company's forward-looking growth targets.

Building a New Foundation with Innovative Materials

A key driver of this diversification is innovation. In 2025, Core Molding launched a proprietary sheet molding compound (SMC) into the building products sector, a move that generated nearly $10 million in revenue in its first year. This segment represents a massive addressable market for the company, estimated to be over $200 million.

The timing is opportune. The global building materials market is on a steady growth trajectory, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 4.5% through the next decade, fueled by urbanization, infrastructure spending, and a demand for sustainable materials. SMC is perfectly suited for this trend, offering a high strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, and design flexibility. These properties make it an ideal alternative to traditional materials for products like exterior cladding, door panels, and structural components.

Duvall highlighted this success, stating, “We also launched proprietary sheet molding compound (SMC) into Building Products, generating close to $10 million in revenue in a large, growing addressable market.” This strategic product launch not only opens a significant new revenue stream but also showcases the company's ability to leverage its material science expertise to penetrate new industries.

Investing in the Future: Mexico Expansion

Underpinning the company’s growth ambitions is a significant capital investment in its North American manufacturing footprint, particularly in Mexico. The company is expanding its Matamoros facility and building a new plant in Monterrey. In 2025, $6.5 million was directed toward this expansion, with an additional $18 million to $20 million budgeted for the projects in 2026.

This nearshoring strategy is designed to add critical capacity, including dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) molding and advanced painting capabilities. The expansion is already supported by existing business, including a program for Volvo Mexico, and is expected to generate up to $20 million in annual revenue from new SMC sleeper roof products alone once fully ramped. These projects are a core component of the company's path toward a stated goal of achieving over $150 million in incremental revenue over the next several years.

“In fiscal 2026, our focus is on execution: expanding the Matamoros facility and bringing the planned Monterrey plant online—on time and on budget,” Duvall affirmed. This focus on execution, combined with the new business wins and a stabilizing truck market, forms the foundation for the company's optimistic outlook, which projects flat to 5% sales growth in 2026 and a clear path to exceeding $300 million in revenue in 2027.