Sensient Technologies Corp (SXT) Q1 2020 Earnings Call Transcript

Sensient Technologies Corp (SXT) Q1 2020 Earnings Call Transcript

Good morning, and welcome to the Sensient Technologies Corporation 2020 First Quarter Earnings Conference call.. I'm Steve Rolfs, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Sensient Technologies Corporation.. I'm joined this morning by Paul Manning, Sensient's Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.. As I outlined in our last call, we expected our profit to be down in the first quarter, as a result of the impacts from the inventory reduction efforts in 2019, product mix in cosmetics, higher raw material costs in natural ingredients and the timing of our fixed cost takeout actions.. We continue to expect profit improvement in both flavors and colors as the year progresses.. As a provider of ingredients to the food, beverage, and personal care markets, our businesses are considered essential.. Overall, our business and employees are responding positively and effectively.. During the first quarter, we continue to generate new sales wins at a high level, in particular in flavors in Asia.. The impact of COVID-19 varies depending on sales channel, geographic region, and product line.. Overall, our food and beverage and pharmaceutical product lines were up in almost all geographic regions.. While the makeup segment of our personal care business was down substantially