Aptar Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual Results

Aptar Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual Results

AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) today reported fourth quarter and annual results for 2018.

Fourth Quarter 2018 Summary

• Reported sales increased 9%
• Core sales, excluding currency and acquisition effects, grew 7%
• Reported earnings per share decreased 19% to $0.62 compared to prior year earnings per share of $0.77
• Adjusted earnings per share increased 19% to $0.92 compared to prior year adjusted earnings per share of $0.77 (including comparable exchange rates)
• Reported net income decreased 18%
• Adjusted EBITDA increased 20%
• Pharma segment earnings included a positive impact of approximately $6 million related to a gain on the sale of an equity investment
• Food + Beverage segment earnings included a negative impact of approximately $2 million related to the write-off of a prepaid license fee

Annual 2018 Summary

• Reported sales increased 12%
• Core sales, excluding currency and acquisition effects, grew 8%
• Reported earnings per share decreased 12% to $3.00 compared to prior year earnings per share of $3.41
• Adjusted earnings per share increased 13% to $4.00 compared to prior year adjusted earnings per share of $3.54 (including comparable exchange rates)
• Reported net income decreased 11% and reported net income margin (% of net sales) was 7% compared to 9% a year ago
• Adjusted EBITDA increased 16% and adjusted EBITDA margin was 20% compared to 19% a year ago
• Acquired strategic technologies (CSP Technologies and Reboul)
• 2018 was our 25^th consecutive year of paying an increased dividend

Fourth Quarter Results

For the quarter ended December 31, 2018, reported sales increased to $685 million compared to $626 million in the prior year. Core sales, excluding the negative impact from changes in currency exchange rates and positive acquisition effects, increased approximately 7%.

Commenting on the quarter, Stephan Tanda, President and CEO, said, “Core sales growth reached the high end of our long-term target range as two of our three business segments grew and the third was impacted by lower custom tooling sales compared to a year ago. I am pleased with this top line performance over what was a strong period a year ago when each segment posted double-digit core growth. Our Pharma segment had another excellent quarter while our Beauty + Home segment performed well, and our Food + Beverage segment underperformed in the Chinese beverage market. Demand for our innovative solutions was again broad-based and we increased core sales in each geographic region and across each of our end markets other than the beverage market. We implemented price increases to pass-along raw material cost increases but faced cost headwinds and some operational challenges in our Beauty + Home segment. We intend to remain diligent in our cost pass-through and turnaround efforts. In addition, the integration of CSP Technologies is progressing well and we are pleased to offer CSP’s active packaging solutions as part of Aptar’s ever-growing portfolio of differentiating solutions.”

Aptar reported earnings per share of $0.62 compared to $0.77 reported a year ago. Current year adjusted earnings per share, excluding restructuring expenses, acquisition costs and purchase accounting adjustments, were $0.92 and up 19% from the prior year adjusted earnings per share, including comparable exchange rates, of $0.77.

Annual Results

For the year ended December 31, 2018, reported sales increased 12% to $2.76 billion from $2.47 billion a year ago. Core sales, excluding the positive impact from changes in currency exchange rates and acquisition effects, increased approximately 8%.

Tanda commented on the annual results, “We had an excellent year overall with strong top line growth across each segment, each geographic region and in all end markets other than beverage, which was slightly down on lower custom tooling sales. We continued to benefit from our Commercial Excellence and Transformation initiatives, especially in our Beauty + Home segment. We also faced inflationary cost increases that had negative effects on our profitability and we are working diligently to increase prices to offset these headwinds. Aptar’s strategic priorities continue to forge a path for success and we are committed to helping our customers win in their markets with the industry’s broadest portfolio of differentiated services and solutions.”

For the year 2018, Aptar reported earnings per share of $3.00 compared to $3.41 reported a year ago. Current year adjusted earnings per share, excluding restructuring expenses, acquisition costs and purchase accounting adjustments, were $4.00 and up 13% from prior year adjusted earnings per share, including comparable exchange rates, of $3.54.

Business Transformation

The business transformation in Aptar’s Beauty + Home segment and key corporate functions is progressing as planned with the goal to become a more agile and customer-focused organization. Our commercial initiatives are yielding positive results on our Beauty + Home segment’s top line growth. In addition, other initiatives are also contributing to margin improvements though their impacts were offset by headwinds including the timing of raw material cost pass-throughs and isolated operational challenges in the fourth quarter.

Outlook

Commenting on Aptar’s outlook, Tanda said, “We anticipate positive sales momentum continuing into the first quarter, and we expect each segment to post core sales growth over the prior year. We are addressing near-term opportunities and challenges while we plan for the long-term. Aptar is a leader in the global packaging and drug delivery industries and we are committed to playing a part in creating a more sustainable future for generations to come. I am pleased to say that we are accelerating our efforts and taking the next steps toward this goal. We recently announced that we have signed the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment and joined the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. While our portfolio already offers fully recyclable and post-consumer recycled resin solutions, we are looking forward to having an even greater impact towards a truly circular economy.”

Our current first quarter earnings per share guidance range reflects a higher tax rate and higher estimated outstanding share count than the prior year and it also assumes negative foreign currency translation effects as the euro has weakened considerably from a year ago. Aptar expects earnings per share for the first quarter, excluding any restructuring costs, to be in the range of $0.95 to $1.00 and this guidance is based on an effective tax rate range of 29% to 31%. The midrange of this guidance represents an improvement of approximately 9% over the prior year earnings per share excluding restructuring expenses and adjusted to comparable currency and tax rates. Prior year reported earnings per share were $0.92.

Cash Dividend

As previously reported, the Board declared on January 17, 2019 a quarterly cash dividend of $0.34 per share. The payment date is February 20, 2019, to stockholders of record as of January 30, 2019.

Open Conference Call

There will be a conference call on Thursday, February 21, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. Central Time to discuss the Company’s fourth quarter and annual results for 2018. The call will last approximately one hour. Interested parties are invited to listen to a live webcast by visiting the Investor Relations page at www.aptar.com. Replay of the conference call can also be accessed for a limited time on the Investor Relations page of the website.

Aptar is a leading global supplier of a broad range of innovative dispensing, sealing and active packaging solutions for the beauty, personal care, home care, prescription drug, consumer health care, injectables, food and beverage markets. Aptar uses insights, design, engineering and science to create innovative packaging technologies that build brand value for its customers, and, in turn, make a meaningful difference in the lives, looks, health and homes of people around the world. Aptar is headquartered in Crystal Lake, Illinois and has over 14,000 dedicated employees in 18 different countries. For more information, visit www.aptar.com.

Presentation of Non-GAAP Information

This press release refers to certain non-GAAP financial measures, including current year adjusted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA, which exclude the impact of restructuring costs, acquisition costs and purchase accounting adjustments that affected inventory values. Core sales and adjusted earnings per share also neutralize the impact of foreign currency translation effects when comparing current results to the prior year. Non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled non-GAAP financial measures provided by other companies. Aptar’s management believes these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to our investors because they allow for a better period over period comparison of operating results by removing the impact of items that, in management’s view, do not reflect Aptar’s core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures also provide investors with certain information used by Aptar’s management when making financial and operational decisions. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP financial results, but should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of income and other information presented herein. A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures is included in the accompanying tables. Our outlook is provided on a non-GAAP basis because certain reconciling items are dependent on future events that either cannot be controlled, such as tax and exchange rates, or reliably predicted because they are not part of the Company's routine activities, such as restructuring and acquisition costs.

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including certain statements set forth under the “Outlook” and “Business Transformation” sections of this press release. Words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “future,” “potential” and other similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “should,” “would” and “could” are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and are based on our beliefs as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to us. Accordingly, our actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements due to known or unknown risks and uncertainties that exist in our operations and business environment including, but not limited to: the successful integration of the CSP Technologies business; the impact of tax reform legislation including changes in tax rates and other tax-related events or transactions that could impact our effective tax rate; the execution of the business transformation; economic conditions worldwide including potential deflationary and inflationary conditions in regions we rely on for growth; political conditions worldwide; significant fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; changes in customer and/or consumer spending levels; financial conditions of customers and suppliers; consolidations within our customer or supplier bases; fluctuations in the cost of materials, components and other input costs; the availability of raw materials and components; our ability to successfully implement facility expansions and new facility projects; our ability to increase prices, contain costs and improve productivity; changes in capital availability or cost, including interest rate fluctuations; volatility of global credit markets; cybersecurity threats that could impact our networks and reporting systems; fiscal and monetary policies and other regulations; direct or indirect consequences of acts of war or terrorism; work stoppages due to labor disputes; and competition, including technological advances. For additional information on these and other risks and uncertainties, please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the discussion under “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Form 10-Ks and Form 10-Qs. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Investor Relations Contact:
Matt DellaMaria
matt.dellamaria@aptar.com
815-477-0424

Media Contact:
Katie Reardon
katie.reardon@aptar.com
815-477-0424

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