Holmen Interim Report January–September 2019
| Quarter | January-September | Full year | ||||
| SEKm | 3-19 | 2-19 | 3-18 | 2019 | 2018 | 2018 |
| Net sales | 4 144 | 4 361 | 3 844 | 12 765 | 12 108 | 16 055 |
| Operating pofit excl. item affecting comparability | 541 | 574 | 591 | 1 758 | 1 862 | 2 476 |
| Operating profit | 541 | 574 | 591 | 1 758 | 1 862 | 2 382 |
| Profit after tax | 409 | 451 | 458 | 1 363 | 1 724 | 2 268 |
| Earnings per share, SEK | 2.5 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 8.1 | 10.3 | 13.5 |
| Operating margin, % * | 13.0 | 13.2 | 15.4 | 13.8 | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| Return on capital employed, % * | 8.3 | 8.6 | 9.2 | 8.9 | 9.8 | 9.7 |
| Return on equity, % | 7.2 | 7.7 | 8.1 | 7.8 | 10.3 | 10.1 |
| Cash flow before investments and working capital | 522 | 884 | 581 | 2 062 | 1 829 | 2 500 |
| Debt/equity ratio | 0.18 | 0.14 | 0.13 | 0.18 | 0.13 | 0.12 |
*Excluding an item affecting comparability of SEK -94 million in the fourth quarter of 2018.
- Operating profit for January–September was SEK 1 758 million (January–September 2018: SEK 1 862 million). There was a negative SEK 210 million impact from paperboard maintenance shutdowns, compared with SEK 60 million in 2018. Higher wood costs were offset by better selling prices.
- Operating profit in the third quarter totalled SEK 541 million, compared with SEK 574 million in the second quarter. A significant maintenance shutdown had a SEK 130 million impact on profit. Costs were seasonally low and paperboard production went well.
- Profit after tax for January–September was SEK 1 363 million (1 724), which corresponds to earnings per share of SEK 8.1 (10.3). Profit last year year was positively affected by SEK 300 million as a result of a lower tax rate in Sweden.
- Following the Board’s decision in August to begin repurchasing the company’s own shares, 3.7 per cent of the total number of shares have been repurchased for SEK 1 430 million.
- The Board intends at year-end to change Holmen’s accounting of forest holdings so that it is based on fair value calculated on basis of transactions in areas where Holmen owns land. According to preliminary calculations, the value is between SEK 39 billion and SEK 43 billion, compared with the current book value of SEK 19 billion.
For further information please contact:
Henrik Sjölund, President and CEO, tel. +46 8 666 21 05
Anders Jernhall, Executive Vice President and CFO, tel. +46 8 666 21 22
Stina Sandell, Senior Vice President Sustainability and Communications, tel. +46 73 986 51 12
This information such that Holmen AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 12.20 CEST on Friday, 18 October 2019.
Holmen’s business concept is to own and add value to the forest. The forest holdings form the basis of the business – an ecocycle in which the raw material grows and is refined into everything from wood for climate-smart building to renewable packaging, magazines and books. The forest is managed to provide a good annual return and stable value growth while our production operations are run with a focus on profitability and greater value added. In 2018 Holmen’s net sales were just over SEK 16 billion and the group has approx. 3 000 employees. Holmen’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, Large Cap. For more information, visit holmen.com.