Smurfit Westrock has confirmed the financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024 of Smurfit Kappa Group plc.
Due to the timing of the completion of the combination of Smurfit Kappa Group plc and WestRock Company, results for the combined company of Smurfit Westrock will be reported from the third quarter 2024.
Key points included:
- Net Sales of approx. $3.0 bn;
- Net Income of $132m;
- Adjusted EBITDA1 of $480m, with an Adjusted EBITDA Margin of 16.2%;
- Smurfit Westrock listed on the NYSE and included in S&P 500;
- Smurfit Westrock credit rating of BBB/BBB/Baa2 from S&P, Fitch and Moody’s respectively.
Tony Smurfit, President and CEO, commented, “I am pleased to report a strong set of results, and continued delivery of quality and service for our customers. This has been driven by our performance-led culture, together with the continuing benefits of our prior year capital allocation decisions. These results were also achieved against a backdrop of significantly higher recovered fiber costs and lower corrugated box prices. We expect these increased costs will be recovered through increased box pricing with the customary time lag.
“Smurfit Kappa’s corrugated volume growth was 3.1% in the second quarter with 3.5% growth in Europe and 1.5% in the Americas year-on-year. On a shipments per day basis, volume growth was 1.1% for the Group, with growth of 1.4% and 0.1% in Europe and the Americas respectively. Demand in Southern and Eastern Europe remained robust while German demand remained soft. In the Americas, demand was generally good, with the exception of Argentina.
“After the quarter end, on July 5, we completed our transaction with WestRock. On July 8, Smurfit Westrock listed on the NYSE and was included in the S&P 500. While we don’t underestimate the amount of hard work ahead of us, there is tremendous energy and enthusiasm to ensure a successful future for Smurfit Westrock. I believe that with the quality of our people and the strength of our market positions, we are creating something truly unique. Smurfit Westrock will be the ‘Go-To’ sustainable packaging company with the right product, in the right space at the right time.”
