NL Industries is a holding company whose balance sheet recovery posture is dominated by two illiquid equity-method investments and a meaningful cash position, offset by contingent and environmental liabilities that carry face-value treatment under the liquidation lens. At March 31, 2026, total assets are $461.2M against total liabilities of $83.6M (current $14.6M plus noncurrent $68.9M), yielding reported book equity of $377.6M including $18.3M noncontrolling interest. Under liquidation mechanics, the recovery picture is substantially different. The largest single asset is the equity-method investment in Kronos Worldwide ($228.2M book), which at liquidation receives a haircut to market value — the filing discloses NL holds 35.2M Kronos shares with market value of $231.4M at March 31, 2026, suggesting the investment is approximately at-book today, but Kronos itself reported a Q1 2026 net loss of $4.8M and gross margin compression from 22% to 16% YoY, introducing downside risk to that market value. The Valhi equity securities ($17.1M market, $17.1M book) liquidate at 100% as publicly traded. Cash and restricted cash total $105.4M (recoverable at 100%), with $101.9M unrestricted. CompX net assets are embedded in consolidated results; CompX carries goodwill of $27.2M which receives a zero recovery haircut. PP&E net is $23.5M (gross $108.1M, accumulated depreciation $84.6M), recoverable at 50-70% of net, implying $11.7M-$16.4M. Inventory of $30.1M recovers at 60%, or approximately $18.1M. AR of $19.0M recovers at 90-95%, or approximately $17.1M-$18.1M. On the liability side, environmental accruals of $13.0M (current $2.1M, noncurrent $10.9M) remain at face. The deferred tax liability of $55.4M sits on the noncurrent liability stack at face value under the lens; this materially compresses equity recovery as it is largely attributable to the unremitted earnings of Kronos and would likely reverse on liquidation, but under the strict face-value rule it stays. The $-195.0M accumulated OCI reflects pension and currency translation items that compress book equity but do not represent cash obligations in all scenarios. Pension liability of $0.3M is de minimis post the 2025 U.S. plan termination process. The new City of Columbus lead-pigment lawsuit (served March 2026) adds an unquantified contingent liability not yet accrued. MFFAIS CLV/LLV of $86.4M and OLV of $116.4M are materially below reported book equity, primarily because the deferred tax liability ($55.4M) and goodwill impairment ($27.2M zero-recovery) account for most of the gap. Compared to the prior filing (December 31, 2025 10-K), the key change is the Kronos equity-method investment shifted from a modest earning position to a loss position ($-1.5M equity in losses vs. $5.5M income in Q1 2025), reducing the carrying value, and cash declined $8.7M from operating and financing outflows.
▼ Community Notes