KapStone Reports Record Third Quarter Results

Net income of $73 million for the 2018 third quarter increased by $42 million, or 142 percent, compared to the 2017 third quarter. The higher earnings primarily reflects:

• Higher selling prices and a better product mix of $41 million;
• Improved productivity and lower spending generated $9 million of benefits;
• Planned maintenance costs were $4 million lower than the prior year;
• Lower recycled fiber costs of $14 million; and
• A lower effective income tax rate resulting from the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in December 2017.

The above items were partially offset by:

• WestRock merger related expenses of $5 million;
• Inflation of $12 million driven by higher virgin fiber, freight and compensation costs;
• Hurricane Florence idled our Charleston mill for five days with a negative impact of $6 million; and
• $7 million of higher management incentives due to higher earnings.

Cash Flow and Working Capital

Cash and cash equivalents of $22 million as of September 30, 2018, increased by $13 million from June 30, 2018.  Operating activities provided $156 million during the third quarter. Investing activities used $32 million and financing activities used $110 million of cash in the current quarter, reflecting a $75 million debt prepayment, $25 million of other debt reductions and a $10 million quarterly dividend payment.   

On August 30, 2018, our Board of Directors approved a regular $0.10 per share cash dividend which was paid on October 11th.

At September 30, 2018, the Company had approximately $501 million of working capital and $484 million of revolver borrowing capacity. The Company's net debt to EBITDA ratio as defined by our credit agreement decreased to 2.33 times at September 30, 2018, down from 3.87 times a year ago.

KapStone and WestRock are targeting completing the proposed merger by the end of the calendar year 2018, subject to satisfaction or waiver of the closing conditions in the merger agreement.

About the Company

Headquartered in Northbrook, IL, KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation is the fifth largest producer of containerboard and corrugated packaging products and is the largest kraft paper producer in the United States. The Company has four paper mills, 22 converting plants and over 60 distribution centers. The business has approximately 6,300 employees.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release includes certain non-GAAP financial measures, including "EBITDA", "Adjusted EBITDA", "Adjusted Net Income", and "Adjusted Diluted EPS" to measure our operating performance. Management uses these measures to focus on the on-going operations, and believes it is useful to investors because they enable them to perform meaningful comparisons of past and present operating results. The Company believes that EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA provide useful information to investors because they improve the comparability of the financial results between periods and provide for greater transparency to key measures used to evaluate the performance of the Company. Management uses EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA for evaluating the Company's performance against competitors and as a primary measure for employees' incentive programs. Reconciliations of Net Income to EBITDA, EBITDA to Adjusted EBITDA, Net Income to Adjusted Net Income, and Diluted EPS to Adjusted Diluted EPS are included in the financial schedules contained in this press release. However, these measures should not be construed as an alternative to any other measure of performance determined in accordance with GAAP.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this news release that are not historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words such as "may," "will," "should," "would,' "expect," "project," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "estimate," "potential," "outlook," or "continue," the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. These statements reflect management's current views and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, many of which are beyond the Company's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to: (1) industry conditions; (2) market and economic factors; (3) results of legal proceedings and compliance costs; (4) the ability to achieve and effectively manage growth; (5) the ability to pay the Company's debt obligations; (6) the ability to carry out the Company's strategic initiatives and manage associated costs; (7) managing labor relations; (8) realizing the synergies and benefits of strategic investments; (9) unanticipated business interruptions; and (10) the ability of KapStone and WestRock to receive the required regulatory approvals for the proposed acquisition of KapStone by WestRock (and the risk that such approvals may result in the imposition of conditions that could adversely affect the combined company or the expected benefits of the proposed transaction) and to satisfy the other conditions to the closing of the proposed transaction on a timely basis or at all; the occurrence of events that may give rise to a right of one or both of the parties to terminate the merger agreement; negative effects of the announcement or the consummation of the transaction on the market price of WestRock's or KapStone's common stock and/or on their respective businesses, financial conditions, results of operations and financial performance; risks relating to the value of the Whiskey Holdco, Inc. shares that may be issued in the transaction, significant transaction costs and/or unknown liabilities; the possibility that the anticipated benefits from the proposed transaction cannot be realized in full or at all or may take longer to realize than expected; risks associated with third party contracts containing consent and/or other provisions that may be triggered by the proposed transaction; risks associated with transaction-related litigation; the possibility that costs or difficulties related to the integration of KapStone's operations with those of WestRock will be greater than expected; the outcome of legally required consultation with employees or other employee representatives; and the ability of KapStone and the combined company to retain and hire key personnel. There can be no assurance that the proposed transaction will in fact be consummated in the manner described or at all. Further information on these and other risks and uncertainties is provided under Part I, Item 1A "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 and elsewhere in reports that the Company files with the SEC. These filings can be found on KapStone's Web site at http://www.kapstonepaper.com and the SEC's Web site at www.sec.gov. Forward-looking statements included herein speak only as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to revise or update such statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events or circumstances.

KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation
Consolidated Statements of Income
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
(Unaudited)
	Quarter Ended September 30,					Nine Months Ended Sept. 30,
	2018		2017			2018		2017
Net sales	$     893,595		$   868,418			$ 2,605,526		$ 2,456,978
Cost and expenses:
Cost of sales, excluding depreciation and amortization	593,231		613,997			1,781,741		1,770,536
Depreciation and amortization	45,129		47,462			138,823		138,864
Plant closure costs	-		8,967			1,752		8,967
Freight and distribution expenses	82,158		77,043			236,997		225,671
Selling, general and administrative expenses	61,721		62,767			192,826		196,565
Merger expenses	4,590		-			20,490		-
Gain on sale of property	(680)		-			(8,133)		-
Operating income	107,446		58,182			241,030		116,375
Foreign exchange (gain) / loss	(187)		(415)			760		(1,501)
Non operating pension and postretirement income	(3,092)		(1,563)			(9,275)		(4,689)
Equity method investment income	(311)		(671)			(1,551)		(1,377)
Loss on debt extinguishment	456		631			456		631
Interest expense, net	15,865 Werbung Mehr Nachrichten zur KapStone Paper & Packaging Corp Aktie kostenlos abonnieren E-Mail-Adresse Bitte überprüfe deine die E-Mail-Adresse. Benachrichtigungen von ARIVA.DE (Mit der Bestellung akzeptierst du die Datenschutzhinweise) -1 Vielen Dank, dass du dich für unseren Newsletter angemeldet hast. Du erhältst in Kürze eine E-Mail mit einem Aktivierungslink. Hinweis: ARIVA.DE veröffentlicht in dieser Rubrik Analysen, Kolumnen und Nachrichten aus verschiedenen Quellen. Die ARIVA.DE AG ist nicht verantwortlich für Inhalte, die erkennbar von Dritten in den „News“-Bereich dieser Webseite eingestellt worden sind, und macht sich diese nicht zu Eigen. Diese Inhalte sind insbesondere durch eine entsprechende „von“-Kennzeichnung unterhalb der Artikelüberschrift und/oder durch den Link „Um den vollständigen Artikel zu lesen, klicken Sie bitte hier.“ erkennbar; verantwortlich für diese Inhalte ist allein der genannte Dritte. Andere Nutzer interessierten sich auch für folgende News 11:45 - PR Newswire Invesco Bond Income Plus Ltd - Issue of Equity 10:30 - PR Newswire Fidelity China Special Situations Plc - Monthly Factsheet 09:10 - PR Newswire Oscillate Plc - Holding(s) in Company Solarboom 2024:    5 Gründe die für diese Aktie sprechen… weiterlesen» Anzeige wo-site-teaser-box-16746_site-teaser-box_2024-04-24_08%253A00%253A00_2024-04-25_09%253A00%253A59