Ball (BALL) Bank of America 2026 Global Agriculture and Materials Conference summary

Strategic priorities and business outlook

• Focus on four strategic pillars: execution, customer proximity, driving substrate shift to cans, and leveraging network complexity for profitable growth.

• North America started the year positively, exceeding expectations at the low end of the 1%-3% growth range.

• Europe is expected to grow at the top end of the range, boosted by recent inorganic acquisitions.

• South America experienced a strong carnival season but overall summer was challenging; still targeting low end of volume range with 2x operating leverage.

• Major events like the World Cup and America250 are driving early demand for custom can labels and supporting volume growth.

Operational excellence and cost management

• Achieved $500 million in gross cost savings a year ahead of schedule by standardizing operations across all plants.

• Ongoing focus on operational efficiency, spoilage reduction, and output maximization at plant level.

• Annual gross savings of 1%-2% of supply chain costs targeted, with some savings shared with customers.

• Millersburg plant to start in Q3, adding needed capacity and network flexibility, with benefits expected in Q4 and 2027.

• Tariff headwinds on can ends expected to ease by Q4 2026 and be largely gone by 2027.

Financial discipline and capital allocation

• Committed to capital spending at or below depreciation and amortization (D&A) levels, averaging $600 million per year over three years.

• No new capacity built without long-term contracts tied to strategic customers.

• Targeting leverage ratio of 2.5x, down from 2.8x, with a path to further reduction.

• Share repurchases expected in the 4%-6% range of outstanding shares, supporting 10% EPS growth.

• 90% of 2027 capacity is already sold, with over 50% sold for 2028, ensuring strong forward visibility.