Greif Reports Third Quarter 2021 Results

DELAWARE, Ohio, Sept. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Greif, Inc. (NYSE: GEF, GEF.B), a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, today announced third quarter 2021 results.

Third Quarter Financial Highlights include (all results compared to the third quarter of 2020 unless otherwise noted)⁽¹⁾:

• Record net sales of $1,490.8 million, an increase of $407.8 million compared to net sales of $1,083.0 million.
• Net income of $113.0 million or $1.89 per diluted Class A share increased compared to net income of $20.7 million or $0.35 per diluted Class A share. Net income, excluding the impact of adjustments⁽²⁾, of $115.9 million or $1.93 per diluted Class A share increased compared to net income, excluding the impact of adjustments, of $50.1 million or $0.85 per diluted Class A share.
• Record Adjusted EBITDA⁽³⁾ of $237.8 million, an increase of $78.4 million compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $159.4 million.
• Net cash provided by operating activities decreased by $40.1 million to a source of $94.9 million. Adjusted free cash flow⁽⁴⁾ decreased by $42.5 million to a source of $64.1 million.
• Total debt decreased by $370.0 million to $2,267.6 million. Net debt⁽⁵⁾ decreased by $371.3 million to $2,167.8 million and decreased by $35.2 million sequentially from the second quarter of 2021. The Company's leverage ratio⁽⁶⁾ decreased to 2.8x compared to 3.7x.

Strategic Actions and Announcements

• Announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Pete Watson will retire on February 1, 2022 and will be succeeded by Chief Operating Officer Ole Rosgaard. Also announced that Michael Gasser, current Chairman of the Board of Directors, will not stand for re-election at the Company's 2022 annual meeting of stockholders and that Pete Watson will become Executive Chairman and Bruce Edwards will become the lead director of the Board of Directors at that time.
• Increased fiscal year 2021 guidance for Class A earnings per share before adjustments and Adjusted Free Cash Flow.
• Increased quarterly dividend by 2 cents to $0.46 per Common Class A share and by 3 cents to $0.69 per Common Class B share. These increases are effective for the next quarterly dividend payable on October 1, 2021, to stockholders of record at the close of business on September 17, 2021.
• Repaid Euro 200 million of 7.375% senior notes by drawing on $225 million of available term loan borrowing under an existing credit agreement. The new borrowing matures in July 2026 and has an interest rate of approximately 2.0%.

CEO Commentary

"The Greif team delivered an exceptional third quarter," said Pete Watson, Greif's President and Chief Executive Officer. "In addition to strong operating results, we achieved record financial performance, reduced our debt and made meaningful progress towards achieving our targeted leverage ratio. While we continue to face significant inflationary conditions, COVID-19 related constraints and labor availability challenges, our underlying end markets are strong and we are executing with discipline to offset challenges and deliver on our commitments. Looking ahead, Greif is well positioned for success as we continue to partner closely with our customers and drive enhanced value creation for our shareholders."

Customer Service

The Company's consolidated CSI⁽⁷⁾ score was 94.1 during the fiscal third quarter and 93.1 on a trailing four quarter basis. Our long term objective is for each business segment to achieve a CSI score of 95.0 or greater.

CSI for the Global Industrial Packaging segment was 95.2, which was 2.6% higher than the prior year quarter.

CSI for the Paper Packaging & Services segment was 92.5, which was flat to the prior year quarter.

Segment Results (all results compared to the third quarter of 2020 unless otherwise noted)

Net sales are impacted mainly by the volume of primary products⁽⁸⁾ sold, selling prices, product mix and the impact of changes in foreign currencies against the U.S. Dollar. The table below shows the percentage impact of each of these items on net sales for our primary products for the third quarter of 2021 as compared to the prior year quarter for the business segments with manufacturing operations.

Global Industrial Packaging

Net sales increased by $290.0 million to $907.8 million. Net sales excluding foreign currency translation increased by $256.3 million primarily due to higher volumes and higher average sale prices.

Gross profit increased by $70.7 million to $199.4 million. The increase in gross profit was primarily due to the same factors that impacted net sales, partially offset by higher raw material costs and transportation expenses.

Operating profit increased by $75.4 million to $122.0 million. Adjusted EBITDA increased by $61.7 million to $146.2 million primarily due to the same factors that impacted gross profit, as well as higher SG&A expense that was mainly attributable to higher incentive accruals, partially offset by a one-time Brazilian tax recovery of approximately $9.2 million related to taxes paid over the past two decades.

Paper Packaging & Services

Net sales increased by $119.5 million to $578.8 million. Net sales excluding foreign currency translation increased by $118.4 million primarily due to higher volumes and higher published containerboard and boxboard prices.

Gross profit increased by $29.1 million to $118.0 million. The increase in gross profit was primarily due to the same factors that impacted net sales, partially offset by higher old corrugated container and other raw material input costs and higher transportation expenses.

Operating profit increased by $34.2 million to $47.5 million. Adjusted EBITDA increased by $17.9 million to $89.9 million primarily due to the same factors that impacted gross profit, as well as higher SG&A expense that was mainly attributable to higher incentive accruals.

Land Management

Net sales decreased by $1.7 million to $4.2 million.

Operating profit increased by $1.6 million to $3.6 million. Adjusted EBITDA decreased by $1.2 million to $1.7 million.

Tax Summary

During the third quarter, the Company recorded an income tax rate of 22.2 percent. The Company's tax rate excluding the impact of adjustments was 22.3 percent. The application of FIN 18 frequently causes fluctuations in our quarterly effective tax rates. For fiscal 2021, the Company expects its tax rate to range between 17.0 and 21.0 percent and its tax rate excluding adjustments to range between 20.0 and 23.0 percent.

Dividend Summary

On August 31, 2021, the Board of Directors declared quarterly cash dividends of $0.46 per share of Class A Common Stock and $0.69 per share of Class B Common Stock. Dividends are payable on October 1, 2021, to stockholders of record at the close of business on September 17, 2021.

Company Outlook

Note: Fiscal 2021 Class A earnings per share guidance on a GAAP basis is not provided in this release due to the potential for one or more of the following, the timing and magnitude of which we are unable to reliably forecast: gains or losses on the disposal of businesses, timberland or properties, plants and equipment, net; non-cash asset impairment charges due to unanticipated changes in the business; restructuring-related activities; non-cash incremental COVID-19 costs, net; non-cash pension settlement (income) charges; or acquisition and integration costs, and the income tax effects of these items and other income tax-related events. No reconciliation of the fiscal 2021 Class A earnings per share before adjustments guidance, a non-GAAP financial measure which excludes restructuring charges, acquisition and integration costs, non-cash asset impairment charges, non-cash pension settlement (income) charges, incremental COVID-19 costs, net, loss (gain) on the disposal of properties, plants, equipment and businesses, net and timberland gains, net, is included in this release because, due to the high variability and difficulty in making accurate forecasts and projections of some of the excluded information, together with some of the excluded information not being ascertainable or accessible, we are unable to quantify certain amounts that would be required to be included in the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure without unreasonable efforts.  A reconciliation of 2021 adjusted free cash flow guidance to forecasted net cash provided by operating activities, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, is included in this release.

Conference Call

The Company will host a conference call to discuss the third quarter of 2021 results on September 2, 2021, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET). Participants may access the call using the following online registration link: https://www.directeventreg.com/registration/event/5397157. Registrants will receive a confirmation email containing dial in details and a unique conference call code for entry. Phone lines will open at 8:00 a.m. ET on September 2, 2021. A digital replay of the conference call will be available two hours following the call on the company's web site at https://investor.greif.com. To access the recording, guests can call (800) 585-8367 or (416) 621-4642 and use the conference ID 5397157.

About Greif

Greif is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services and is pursuing its vision: in industrial packaging, be the best performing customer service company in the world. The Company produces steel, plastic and fibre drums, intermediate bulk containers, reconditioned containers, flexible products, containerboard, uncoated recycled paperboard, coated recycled paperboard, tubes and cores and a diverse mix of specialty products. The Company also manufactures packaging accessories and provides filling, packaging and other services for a wide range of industries. In addition, Greif manages timber properties in the southeastern United States. The Company is strategically positioned in over 40 countries to serve global as well as regional customers. Additional information is on the Company's website at www.greif.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "aspiration," "objective," "project," "believe," "continue," "on track" or "target" or the negative thereof and similar expressions, among others, identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on assumptions, expectations and other information currently available to management. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those forecasted, projected or anticipated, whether expressed or implied. The most significant of these risks and uncertainties are described in Part I of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2020. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements.

Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements have a reasonable basis, the Company can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those forecasted, projected or anticipated, whether expressed in or implied by the statements. Such risks and uncertainties that might cause a difference include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) historically, our business has been sensitive to changes in general economic or business conditions, (ii) our global operations subject us to currency exchange and political risks that could adversely affect our results of operations, (iii) the COVID-19 pandemic could continue to impact any combination of our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, (iv) the current and future challenging global economy and disruption and volatility of the financial and credit markets may adversely affect our business, (v) the continuing consolidation of our customer base and suppliers may intensify pricing pressure, (vi) we operate in highly competitive industries, (vii) our business is sensitive to changes in industry demands and customer preferences, (viii) raw material, energy and transportation price fluctuations and shortages may adversely impact our manufacturing operations and costs, (ix) the frequency and volume of our timber and timberland sales will impact our financial performance, (x) we may not successfully implement our business strategies, including achieving our growth objectives, (xi) we may encounter difficulties or liabilities arising from acquisitions or divestitures, (xii) the acquisition of Caraustar Industries, Inc. and its subsidiaries subjects us to various risks and uncertainties, (xiii) we may incur additional restructuring costs and there is no guarantee that our efforts to reduce costs will be successful, (xiv) several operations are conducted by joint ventures that we cannot operate solely for our benefit, (xv) certain of the agreements that govern our joint ventures provide our partners with put or call options, (xvi) our ability to attract, develop and retain talented and qualified employees, managers and executives is critical to our success, (xvii) our business may be adversely impacted by work stoppages and other labor relations matters, (xviii) we may be subject to losses that might not be covered in whole or in part by existing insurance reserves or insurance coverage and general insurance premium and deductible increases, (xix) our business depends on the uninterrupted operations of our facilities, systems and business functions, including our information technology and other business systems, (xx) a security breach of customer, employee, supplier or company information may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, (xxi) changes in U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and SEC rules and regulations concerning the maintenance of effective internal controls could materially impact our reported financial results, (xxii) we could be subject to changes in our tax rates, the adoption of new U.S. or foreign tax legislation or exposure to additional tax liabilities, (xxiii) full realization of our deferred tax assets may be affected by a number of factors, (xxiv) our level of indebtedness could adversely affect our liquidity, limit our flexibility in responding to business opportunities, and increase our vulnerability to adverse changes in economic and industry conditions, (xxv) we have a significant amount of goodwill and long-lived assets which, if impaired in the future, would adversely impact our results of operations, (xxvi) our pension and postretirement plans are underfunded and will require future cash contributions and our required future cash contributions could be higher than we expect, each of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and liquidity, (xxvii) legislation/regulation related to environmental and health and safety matters and corporate social responsibility could negatively impact our operations and financial performance, (xxviii) product liability claims and other legal proceedings could adversely affect our operations and financial performance, (xxix) we may incur fines or penalties, damage to our reputation or other adverse consequences if our employees, agents or business partners violate, or are alleged to have violated, anti-bribery, competition or other laws, (xxx) changing climate, climate change regulations and greenhouse gas effects may adversely affect our operations and financial performance. The risks described above are not all-inclusive, and given these and other possible risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. For a detailed discussion of the most significant risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those forecasted, projected or anticipated, see "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of our most recently filed Form 10-K and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements made in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to such risk factors. Except to the limited extent required by applicable law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.