Fourth Quarter Highlights
*Consolidated net sales of $264.3 million were 28 percent higher than the prior year, setting a new record for fourth quarter revenues. The revenue growth was attributable to organic volume gains in both segments, pricing actions and the effects of the Itasa acquisition.
*Fine Paper & Packaging pricing and other actions contributed to an adjusted EBIT margin of 13 percent, with adjusted operating income of $12.3 million from $97.6 million of net sales.
*Earnings (loss) per diluted common share of $(0.41) compared to $0.59 in the fourth quarter of 2020. Adjusted earnings per share of $0.45 decreased from $0.87 in the prior year.
*Available liquidity of $170 million remained strong, with cash generated from operations of $12.9 million.
*Quarterly cash dividends were $0.475 per share, an increase for the 11th consecutive year.
*We are investing 25 million Euros in new meltblown capacity in our German filtration facility.
Full Year Highlights
*We achieved an improvement in our safety recordable incident rate by approximately 30 percent.
*Net sales of $1,028.5 million increased 30 percent compared to 2020, primarily driven by organic volume growth, pricing actions and the impact of the acquisition of Itasa.
*A loss per diluted common share of ($1.49) compared to a loss of $(0.96) per share in 2020. On an adjusted basis, earnings per share of $2.53 compared with $2.46 per share in 2020. Improvements in profitability from top line growth were partially offset by significantly higher input costs and impacts of supply chain disruptions.
*In April 2021, we acquired Itasa, a leading global coater and converter of release liners used in hygiene, tapes, industrial labels, composites and various other end markets. The purchase price was $240.2 million, and in the first nine months of ownership, Itasa has generated incremental net sales of $106.9 million.
*We executed several operational initiatives, including a $13 million investment in new coating capacity starting up in 2023, closure of our Appleton, Wisconsin facility to save $7-8 million annually, and restarting an idled asset to support growth in premium packaging.
*We made meaningful progress on key environmental, social and governance initiatives, including actions designed to reduce energy usage, water consumption and greenhouse gases, recognition through leading sustainability rating agencies (including EcoVadis Gold Medal in Spain and Silver Medal in all other locations) and advancements in the diversity of our Board of Directors (with half identifying as female or underrepresented minorities).
“Adjusted earnings” is a non-GAAP measure and is used to improve comparability of year-on-year results. Adjusted figures are reconciled to GAAP later in this release.
“Demand remained very strong in the fourth quarter and we began to see margin improvement against a backdrop of challenging manufacturing and supply chain conditions. We continue to address this dynamic environment with pricing actions and other internal initiatives to restore margins, including several annual pricing agreements taking effect in early 2022,” said Julie Schertell, Chief Executive Officer. “Looking back, 2021 was a foundation building year for Neenah. We took decisive actions to both expand and streamline our business, including a strategic acquisition and a facility closure, while making meaningful progress on our strategic agenda. I am confident our decisions and actions have positioned us well for continued top line growth, margin accretion and shareholder value creation.”
details at: https://ir.neenah.com/investors/press-releases/press-release-details/2022/Neenah-Reports-Consecutive-Record-Quarterly-Top-Line-Results/default.aspx