We ended fiscal year 2020 in a strong position and in the first quarter of fiscal 2021, continued to build on that momentum, delivering strong results.
This past quarter, we reduced our leverage ratio by approximately 0.5 turn to 2.2 times net debt-to-EBITDA.
The 30% growth at Batesville in the quarter was well above our expectations.
Our MTS backlog increased 100% year-over-year on a pro forma basis, driven primarily by continued strength in orders for injection molding equipment.
Total company backlog increased over 32% year-over-year on a pro forma basis, to a new record of $1.4 billion a real sign of continued strong demand for our highly engineered solutions and applications expertise.
We delivered total revenue of $693 million, an increase of 22%.
Excluding the impact of foreign exchange, total revenue increased 19%.
On a pro forma basis revenue increased 6%, driven by strong burial casket demand at Batesville and hot runner systems sales in MTS.
Adjusted EBITDA of $138 million increased 50% and adjusted EBITDA margin of 19.9%, increased 370 basis points.
On a pro forma basis adjusted EBITDA of $137 million, increased 51% and adjusted EBITDA margin was 20%.
With the benefit of additional volume along with the actions, we've taken to contain costs across all segments we expanded our adjusted EBITDA margin, 600 basis points over the prior year on a pro forma basis.
We reported GAAP net income of $76 million or $1.01 per share, an increase of $1.06 over prior year, primarily driven by a decrease in acquisition and integration costs related to Milacron, the gain on the sale of Red Valve and higher volume within Batesville.
Adjusted net income of $72 million resulted in adjusted earnings per share of $0.96, an increase of 28%, mainly driven by strong Batesville and MTS performance.
The adjusted effective tax rate for the quarter was 28.5%, an increase of 650 basis points from the prior year.
Hillenbrand generated cash flow from operations of $66 million, an increase of $48 million compared to the prior year.
Capital expenditures were approximately $6 million in the quarter, slightly lower than anticipated.
We also paid down $157 million of debt and returned $16 million to our shareholders, in the form of cash dividends.
We recognized $6 million of incremental synergies in the quarter.
And we expect to deliver $20 million to $25 million of synergies this year.
We remain on track to achieve the three-year $75 million total run rate synergies, related to the Milacron acquisition.
Moving to segment performance Batesville's revenue of $165 million, increased 30% year-over-year, driven by higher volume, as a result of increased deaths associated with COVID-19 and higher average selling price, partially offset by an estimated increase in the rate at which families opted for cremation.
Adjusted EBITDA margin of 31.7%, improved 1,360 basis points over the prior year and more than offset inflation in the quarter.
Turning to Advanced Process Solutions, APS revenue of $291 million decreased 5%.
On a pro forma basis, revenue of $283 million also decreased 5%.
Excluding the impact of currency, revenue decreased to 9%.
Adjusted EBITDA margin of 16.7% was down 10 basis points, and down 30 basis points on a pro forma basis.
Order backlog excluding Red Valve reached a new record high of $1.1 billion at the end of the first quarter, an increase of 21% year-over-year on a pro forma basis.
Excluding the impact of foreign currency exchange, backlog increased to 12%.
Sequentially backlog increased to 10% on a pro forma basis from the previous record high.
These projects are expected to contribute to revenue over the next several quarters including about 28% of the backlog expected to convert to revenue beyond the next 12 months.
MTS revenue of $237 million increased 78% and 7% on a pro forma basis in comparison to the prior year.
Excluding the impact of foreign exchange, revenue increased 5%.
Sales of hot runner systems increased double digits on continued solid demand in medical and packaging end markets and sales of injection molding and extrusion equipment were roughly flat year-over-year, but improved 20% on a sequential basis.
Adjusted EBITDA of $48 million increased 84% and 47% on a pro forma basis with adjusted EBITDA margin of 20.4% increasing 560 basis points compared to the prior year on a pro forma basis.
Order backlog of $292 million increased 100% compared to the prior year on a pro forma basis and 20% sequentially, primarily driven by an increase in injection molding equipment orders.
Turning to the balance sheet; net debt at the end of the quarter was $1.1 billion and the net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio fell by half a turn sequentially to 2.2 times.
As of the quarter end, we had liquidity of approximately $1.1 billion including $266 million in cash on hand and the remainder available under our revolver.
In the quarter, cash proceeds from the sale of Red Valve were $59 million.
We paid down $157 million of debt including prepayment of our term loan due in 2022 with cash on hand and revolver borrowings.
We expect Hillenbrand's total second quarter revenue to increase year-over-year in a range of 12% to 16%.
We expect adjusted EBITDA in the range of $126 million to $137 million and adjusted earnings per share in the range of $0.85 to $0.95 for the second quarter, an increase of 29% on a year-over-year basis at the midpoint of the range.
Starting with Batesville; in the second quarter, we expect revenue to increase 20% to 25% year-over-year based on a continued trend of elevated burial casket volumes due to the pandemic.
We're targeting adjusted EBITDA margin of 29% to 30%, an increase of 590 to 690 basis points over the prior year.
In Advanced Process Solutions, which includes mid and long-cycle capital systems equipment and aftermarket parts and service, we expect second quarter revenue in a range of flat to down 4% year-over-year, primarily due to customer-driven delays with the timing of long-cycle, large polyolefin projects.
We expect adjusted EBITDA margin of 17.5% to 18% to be modestly lower from a year-over-year perspective, down 60 to 110 basis points, as the headwind from lower volume, project mix and certain targeted investments is partially offset by our continued cost containment and productivity initiatives.
Turning to Molding Technology Solutions, which includes mid-cycle injection molding equipment, short-cycle hot runner systems and aftermarket parts and service, we expect strong second quarter revenue growth in a range of 37% to 40% over prior year as demand continues to be strong in both hot runner and injection molding product lines.
We are targeting adjusted EBITDA margin of 18.8% to 19.2%, an improvement of about 320 to 360 basis points, as the benefit of higher volume and continued productivity improvements flow to the bottom line.
We're on track to deliver $20 million to $25 million in year two synergies, and we remain confident in achieving year three run rate synergies of $75 million.

Summary:
We ended fiscal year 2020 in a strong position and in the first quarter of fiscal 2021, continued to build on that momentum, delivering strong results.
We delivered total revenue of $693 million, an increase of 22%.
We reported GAAP net income of $76 million or $1.01 per share, an increase of $1.06 over prior year, primarily driven by a decrease in acquisition and integration costs related to Milacron, the gain on the sale of Red Valve and higher volume within Batesville.
Adjusted net income of $72 million resulted in adjusted earnings per share of $0.96, an increase of 28%, mainly driven by strong Batesville and MTS performance.
We expect Hillenbrand's total second quarter revenue to increase year-over-year in a range of 12% to 16%.
We expect adjusted EBITDA in the range of $126 million to $137 million and adjusted earnings per share in the range of $0.85 to $0.95 for the second quarter, an increase of 29% on a year-over-year basis at the midpoint of the range.