Total U.S. Packaging Papers & Specialty Packaging Shipments Decreased Two Percent in January 2022

Tetra Pak has strengthened its product offering for ice cream manufacturers with the acquisition of Big Drum Engineering GmbH, a leading supplier of filling machines for the industry. The deal further extends the company’s ability to provide end-to-end solutions for food and beverage companies around the world, and reinforces its global leadership in the sector. Tetra Pak already provides a full range of ice cream equipment, including raw material storage, mix preparation, continuous freezing and inclusion systems, as well as production solutions for moulded and extruded ice cream products. The acquisition of Big Drum will strengthen the company’s presence in the “filled” ice cream segment (e.g. tubs and cones) which represent approximately half of the global packaged ice cream market. Click Read More below for additional detail.

Quarter Highlights: *Net sales of $5.0 billion were down 2 percent, with organic sales growth of 4 percent versus the prior year. *Reported gross margin was 36.0 percent, adjusted gross margin was 36.9 percent, up 290 basis points versus the prior year, driven by organic net sales growth and gross productivity gains. *Diluted earnings per share were $1.61; adjusted earnings per share were $1.96, up 19 percent versus prior year including a $0.12 year-on-year headwind from currency translation.

Fourth Quarter Highlights *GAAP: Net sales of $3.1 billion; Operating income of $301 million; Earnings per share (EPS) of $1.55 *Returned $216 million to shareholders ($185 million via share repurchases and $31 million in dividends). Fiscal Year Highlights *GAAP: Net sales of $12.7 billion; Operating income of $1.1 billion; EPS of $4.95 *Cash flow from operations of $1.6 billion; Free cash flow of $926 million *Returned $728 million to shareholders ($601 million via share repurchases and $127 million in dividends)