Stock Monitor: International Paper Post Earnings Reporting
LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / February 07, 2018 / Active-Investors.com has just released a free earnings report on WestRock Co. (NYSE: WRK). If you want access to this report all you need to do is sign up now by clicking the following link www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=WRK. The Company posted its financial results on January 29, 2018, for the first quarter of the fiscal year 2018 (Q1 FY18). The Atlanta, Georgia-based Company's adjusted diluted EPS grew on a y-o-y basis, outperforming market consensus estimates. Register today and get access to over 1000 Free Research Reports by joining our site below:
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Active-Investors.com is currently working on the research report for International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), which also belongs to the Consumer Goods sector as the Company WestRock. Do not miss out and become a member today for free to access this upcoming report at:
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Active-Investors.com is focused on giving you timely information and the inside line on companies that matter to you. This morning, WestRock most recent news is on our radar and our team decided to put out a fantastic report on the company that is now available for free below:
www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=WRK
Earnings Highlights and Summary
For the three months ended December 31, 2017, WestRock reported net sales of $3.89 billion, which came in above the $3.45 billion recorded at the end of Q1 FY17. The Company's adjusted net sales also increased to $3.81 billion in Q1 FY18 from $3.37 billion in Q1 FY17, but missed market forecasts of $3.98 billion.
The paper and packaging Company recorded a GAAP net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.14 billion, or $4.38 per diluted share, in Q1 FY18 compared to $80.9 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, in Q1 FY17. Meanwhile, the Company's adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) increased to $0.87 in Q1 FY18 from $0.47 in Q1 FY17. Furthermore, Wall Street had expected the Company to report an adjusted net income of $0.75 per diluted share.
Operational Metrics
In the reported quarter, the Company's cost of goods was $3.11 billion compared to $2.86 billion in the previous year's same quarter. The Company posted an operating profit of $119.8 million in Q1 FY18 versus $121.4 million in Q1 FY17. The segment income increased to $355.8 million in Q1 FY18 from $230.8 million in the last year's comparable quarter. Furthermore, adjusted segment earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) grew to $654.3 million during Q1 FY18 from $490.2 million in Q1 FY17.
Segment Results
WestRock's Corrugated Packaging segment reported adjusted sales of $2.09 billion in Q1 FY18 versus $1.87 billion in the last year's corresponding quarter. The segment's adjusted EBITDA stood at $427.8 million, or 20.4% of segment sales, in Q1 FY18 compared to $286.9 million, or 15.3% of segment sales, in Q1 FY17.
WestRock's Consumer Packaging segment's adjusted sales increased to $1.76 billion for Q1 FY18 from $1.51 billion in the prior year's same period. The segment posted an adjusted EBITDA of $234.4 million, or 13.3% of segment sales, in Q1 FY18 versus $214.6 million, or 14.2% of segment sales, in Q1 FY17.
WestRock's Land and Development segment's adjusted net sales declined to $11.4 million in Q1 FY18 from $54.0 million in Q1 FY17. Furthermore, the segment reported a negative adjusted EBITDA of 0.6 million in Q1 FY18 versus a positive adjusted EBITDA of $1.9 million in the last year's comparable quarter.
Cash Flow and Balance Sheet
During the first three months ended December 31, 2017, WestRock generated $363.5 million in cash from operations versus $517.4 million in the prior year's corresponding quarter. The Company had $306.4 million in cash and cash equivalents as on December 31, 2017, compared to $298.1 million as on September 30, 2017. Additionally, the Company's long-term debt was $5.37 billion as on December 31, 2017, versus $5.95 billion as on September 30, 2017.
Dividend
In a separate press release on February 02, 2018, WestRock's Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share on its common stock, payable on February 26, 2018, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on February 16, 2018.
Acquisition
On January 29, 2018, WestRock and KapStone Paper and Packaging Corp. (NYSE: KS) ("KapStone") announced the signing of a definitive agreement, pursuant to which WestRock will acquire all of the outstanding shares of KapStone for $35.00 per share and will assume approximately $1.36 billion in net debt, for a total enterprise value of approximately $4.9 billion.
Stock Performance Snapshot
February 06, 2018 - At Tuesday's closing bell, WestRock's stock slightly advanced 0.92%, ending the trading session at $64.55.
Volume traded for the day: 3.19 million shares, which was above the 3-month average volume of 1.75 million shares.
Stock performance in the last three-month – up 7.67%; previous six-month period – up 12.93%; past twelve-month period – up 19.10%; and year-to-date – up 2.12%
After yesterday's close, WestRock's market cap was at $16.42 billion.
Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio was at 9.45.
The stock has a dividend yield of 2.66%.
The stock is part of the Consumer Goods sector, categorized under the Packaging & Containers industry. This sector was up 2.1% at the end of the session.
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