At a glance
Innospec Inc is worth $2.48B, about 22 times its fiscal 2025 earnings. Revenue fell 3.7% to $1.78B in fiscal 2025, with 6.6% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 8.3% a year. It pays a 1.78% dividend yield, raised every year for at least 9 years, and returned $209.2M to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned +37.1% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +4.0% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 41.1% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 20.4% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 11 months and 1 month after the lows.
The business in plain English
Innospec, once known as Octel Corp., makes specialty chemicals: additives and ingredients that other companies put into their own products or use in their operations. It develops the formulas, manufactures or blends them, and sells them to business customers across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific. Revenue for fiscal 2025, which ended December 31, 2025, was $1.78 billion.
Fuel Specialties was the largest segment, at 39.5% of revenue. It sells additives for diesel, jet, marine and heating fuels that improve fuel efficiency, boost engine performance and cut emissions. Its customers include oil companies, fuel retailers, fuel terminals and shipping lines. Innospec believes it is the world's only producer of tetra ethyl lead for aviation gasoline, which it sells as AvGas. Performance Chemicals, at 38.3%, supplies ingredients such as mild surfactants (cleaning and foaming agents) and emollients (skin softeners). It sells to makers of personal care, home care, farm, construction and mining products.
Oilfield Services, the remaining 22.2%, sells chemicals for drilling, completing and producing oil and gas wells. Its customers are mainly producers and service companies in the Americas and the Middle East. No single customer topped 10% of sales in 2025 or 2024. Innospec spent $51.0 million on research, development and technical support in 2025.
Price history
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IOSP +37.1% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By business segment
| Fuel Specialties | $701.5M | 39.5% |
| Performance Chemicals | $681.4M | 38.3% |
| Oilfield Services | $395.1M | 22.2% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2026 (ended Jun 30, 2026), revenue was $491.4M, up 11.8% from a year earlier, and net income was $30.8M (+31.1%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $1.78B (-3.7% year over year; +8.3% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a 6.6% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +8.3% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 7.3% watch |
| Free cash flow margin | 4.9% watch |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | 8.8% watch |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | 6.4% watch |
| Cash and investments | $250.2M (no borrowings found in the filings) good |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $1.19B | $28.7M | $116.2M |
| FY2021 | $1.48B | $93.1M | $54.1M |
| FY2022 | $1.96B | $133.0M | $42.1M |
| FY2023 | $1.95B | $139.1M | $145.2M |
| FY2024 | $1.85B | $35.6M | $143.1M |
| FY2025 | $1.78B | $116.6M | $88.0M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $2.48B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 21.6 |
| Dividend yield | 1.78% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Innospec’s market value went from $1.64B at the end of 2016 to $2.48B on Oct 28, 2026, up 51%; since the end of 2025 it is up 31%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $2.48B | +30.8% |
| 2025 | $1.90B | -30.9% |
| 2024 | $2.75B | -10.4% |
| 2023 | $3.06B | +20.3% |
| 2022 | $2.55B | +14.4% |
| 2021 | $2.23B | -0.2% |
| 2020 | $2.23B | -12.0% |
| 2019 | $2.53B | +68.0% |
| 2018 | $1.51B | -11.5% |
| 2017 | $1.70B | +3.7% |
| 2016 | $1.64B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IOSP price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +33.1% | +37.1% | +3.3% | +4.0% | +6.8% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +33.1% |
| 2025 | -28.9% |
| 2024 | -9.6% |
| 2023 | +21.4% |
| 2022 | +15.2% |
| 2021 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | -11.1% |
| 2019 | +69.4% |
| 2018 | -11.5% |
| 2017 | +4.3% |
| 2016 | +27.7% |
| 2015 | +28.8% |
| 2014 | -6.4% |
| 2013 | +35.5% |
| 2012 | +30.7% |
| 2011 | +37.6% |
| 2010 | +102.2% |
| 2009 | +73.8% |
| 2008 | -65.5% |
| 2007 | -26.0% |
| 2006 | +187.6% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Lost 88.3% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 88.9%, back to its old high 23.3 months after the low |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 38.6% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 41.1%, back to its old high 11.2 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 5.1% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 20.4%, back to its old high 1.1 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 6 sales ($406K).
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 27, 2026 | Ian Cleminson EVP & CFO | sell | $182K |
| Mar 3, 2026 | David B. Jones SVP, GC & CCO | sell | $78K |
| Feb 27, 2026 | Milton C Blackmore Director | sell | $45K |
| Feb 27, 2026 | Larry PADFIELD Director | sell | $45K |
| Feb 27, 2026 | David Landless Director | sell | $45K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 14.7% | Mar 31, 2025 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 7.51% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Dimensional Fund Advisors LP | 5.3% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.22% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC | 4.7% | Sep 30, 2026 |
| WASATCH ADVISORS LP | 2.1% | Mar 31, 2025 |
ETFs with the most weight in IOSP
| PSCM Invesco S&P SmallCap Materials ETF | 3.96% |
| JPSV JPMorgan Active Small Cap Value ETF | 0.92% |
| FSGS First Trust SMID Growth Strength ETF | 0.91% |
| XSLV Invesco S&P SmallCap Low Volatility ETF | 0.65% |
| OASC OneAscent Small Cap Core ETF | 0.6% |
| QQQS Invesco NASDAQ Future Gen 200 ETF | 0.55% |
| DGRS WisdomTree US Smallcap Quality Dividend Growth Fund | 0.54% |
| SDVY First Trust SMID Cap Rising Dividend Achievers ETF | 0.5% |
What could go wrong
- Decline in its unique AvGas business. Innospec believes it is the world's only producer of tetra ethyl lead, an additive for aviation gasoline sold as its AvGas line. The annual report names a decline in this business as a specific risk.
- Fuel additives depend on fuel use. Fuel Specialties, the largest segment at 39.5% of revenue, depends on miles driven and fuel-quality laws. The annual report also flags alternative propulsion systems, meaning vehicles that run on something other than conventional fuel.
- Oil and gas cycles drive Oilfield Services. This segment, 22.2% of fiscal 2025 revenue, sells to oil and gas producers. Lower energy prices can cut drilling and demand. In 2023, one Oilfield Services customer alone made up 13.6% of sales.
- One German plant relies on one pipeline. Ethylene can't legally travel by road in Germany, so one German operation gets it through a direct pipeline, effectively a single source. A supply break would hit products making up about 4% of sales.
- Raw material and energy price spikes. Major inputs include oleochemicals (made from plant or animal fats), ethylene, solvents and amines. They make up a substantial share of variable costs, so sharp price jumps can squeeze profit margins.
- Heavy chemical regulation and cleanup costs. Rules such as the EU's REACH require costly testing and registration of chemicals, and similar regimes are spreading. Innospec also has site closure and cleanup obligations, mainly at its Ellesmere Port site in the UK.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
For income and retirement investors
Innospec's dividend per share rose every year between fiscal 2016 and fiscal 2025, at least nine straight increases. It grew from $1.04 in fiscal 2020 to $1.71 in fiscal 2025, about 10.5% a year. The fiscal 2025 dividend used 36.4% of earnings and 48.2% of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). The yield was 1.78% as of October 28, 2026, a modest level of income. Buybacks are small: $32.4 million over fiscal 2021–2025, versus $176.8 million in dividends.
The share price has fallen hard in downturns. It dropped 88.9% in the 2008 financial crisis and took until February 2011 to recover. It fell 41.1% in the 2020 COVID crash and recovered in about 11 months. In the 2022 bear market it fell 20.4% and regained that ground about a month later. It also lost about 29% in calendar 2025. A single stock like Innospec carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does Innospec make money?
Innospec makes money by selling specialty chemicals to other businesses. Of its $1.78 billion in fiscal 2025 revenue, 39.5% came from Fuel Specialties, which sells additives that improve fuel efficiency and cut emissions. Another 38.3% came from Performance Chemicals, which supplies ingredients for personal care, home care, agriculture, construction and mining products. The remaining 22.2% came from Oilfield Services, which sells chemicals used to drill for and produce oil and gas.
Does Innospec raise its dividend every year?
Yes, so far. Innospec's dividend per share rose every year between fiscal 2016 and fiscal 2025, at least nine straight increases, and the streak may be longer. Dividends per share reached $1.71 in fiscal 2025, up from $1.04 in fiscal 2020, or about 10.5% a year. That payout used 36.4% of fiscal 2025 earnings and 48.2% of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). The yield was 1.78% as of October 28, 2026. Past increases don't guarantee future ones.
Is Innospec affected by oil prices?
Partly. Oilfield Services, 22.2% of fiscal 2025 revenue, sells chemicals for drilling and producing oil and gas. Innospec says oil and gas price trends affect how much its customers drill and produce. Fuel Specialties, 39.5% of revenue, depends on fuel demand. Its annual report cites miles driven, fuel-quality laws and alternative propulsion systems as factors. Swings in raw material and energy costs can also squeeze margins.
What is Innospec's AvGas business?
AvGas is Innospec's product line of tetra ethyl lead, an additive used in aviation gasoline. Innospec believes it is the world's only producer. The product sits within Fuel Specialties, the largest segment at 39.5% of fiscal 2025 revenue. Being the sole supplier is unusual, but its annual report names a decline in the AvGas business as a risk factor. That means this niche product could shrink over time.
How has Innospec stock performed over the long term?
Modestly over the long run, with big swings. As of October 28, 2026, the share price had risen about 6.8% a year over 10 years (93% in total) and about 4% a year over five years. It gained 37.1% in the 12 months to that date, after falling about 29% in calendar 2025. The stock dropped 88.9% in the 2008 financial crisis and 41.1% in the 2020 COVID crash. It recovered from each within about two years.