Holmen’s interim report January–September 2018

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Quarter  January–September  Full Year 
SEKm  3-18  2-18  3-17  2018  2017  2017 
Net sales  3 844  4 164  3 947  12 108  12 225  16 133 
Operating profit   591  618  593  1 862  1 745  2 166 
Profit after tax  458  759  456  1 724  1 336  1 668 
Earnings per share, SEK  2.7  4.5  2.7  10.3  8.0  9.9 
Operating margin, %  15.4  14.9  15.0  15.4  14.3  13.4 
Return on capital employed, %   9.2  9.8  9.4  9.8  9.4  8.7 
Return on equity, %  8.1  13.6  8.5  10.3  8.4  7.8 
Cash flow before investments and working capital          581  662  498  1 829  1 722  2 310 
Debt/equity ratio  0.13  0.15  0.17  0.13  0.17  0.13 
  • Operating profit for January–September totalled SEK 1 862 million, an increase of SEK 117 million compared with the same period last year. The improvement in profit was due to higher earnings from wood products and renewable energy.
  • Compared with the second quarter, operating profit decreased by SEK 27 million to SEK 591 million. Earnings for the third quarter were impacted by a significant maintenance shutdown and costs relating to forest fires. Personnel costs were seasonally low and selling prices for paper and wood products increased slightly.
  • Profit after tax for January–September was SEK 1 724 million (January–September 2017: SEK 1 336 million), which corresponds to earnings per share of SEK 10.3 (8.0). 
  • Return on capital employed increased to 9.8 per cent (9.4).

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 is information that Holmen AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the Swedish Securities Market Act (VpmL). The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, on Wednesday, 24 October 2018 at 12.15.  

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 2017 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.