Crown Holdings, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2020 Results

YARDLEY, Pa., April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020.

Highlights

• Earnings per share $0.65 versus $0.77 in 2019
• Adjusted earnings per share increased to $1.13 over the $1.05 in 2019
• Global beverage can volumes grew 10%
• Solid food can demand
• Previous financial guidance for 2020 withdrawn

Net sales in the first quarter were $2,757 million compared to $2,755 million in the first quarter of 2019 reflecting increased beverage can volumes offset by the pass through of lower raw material costs and $40 million of unfavorable currency translation.

Income from operations was $246 million in the quarter compared to $262 million in the first quarter of 2019. Segment income was $298 million in the first quarter compared to $315 million in the prior year first quarter. Results for European Food and the nonreportable segments include unfavorable impacts of $18 million and $16 million, respectively, in 2020 versus 2019 arising from the carryover of tinplate costs from the prior year end inventory.

Commenting on the quarter, Timothy J. Donahue, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The Company performed well during the first quarter in the face of the emerging coronavirus pandemic. Global beverage can shipments advanced 10% in the quarter, led by double-digit gains in Brazil, Canada, Europe, the Middle East and the United States, as consumers increasingly prefer cans for off-premise refreshment occasions. Solid global food can volume reflected a notable increase in North American shipments.

"I would like to thank all of our employees and partners, whose dedication and commitment continue to be instrumental as we navigate through this unprecedented situation. Crown has taken a number of specific actions, including increased safety measures at our manufacturing facilities to ensure that they can continue to meet evolving requirements in a safe and timely manner. The health and safety of our employees, customers and partners is our highest priority.

"Crown's products are a crucial part of food and beverage supply chains and also provide critical support to the transportation industry. While our first quarter performance was strong, the uncertainty surrounding the impact and duration of the coronavirus pandemic precludes the Company from putting forth projections regarding future financial performance. The management team will continue to focus on employee safety and meeting customer demand while prudently managing our cost structure and ensuring liquidity as a key element of our near-term capital allocation program.

"The Company remains confident in the future global growth of beverage can demand. With a sound capital structure and a strong liquidity position the Company is committed to implementing all previously announced capacity expansion projects, although certain near-term logistical challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic may delay project timing in some cases."

Interest expense was $80 million in the first quarter of 2020 compared to $98 million in 2019 primarily due to a combination of lower outstanding debt balances and interest rates.

Net income attributable to Crown Holdings in the first quarter was $88 million compared to $103 million in the first quarter of 2019. Reported diluted earnings per share were $0.65 in the first quarter of 2020 compared to $0.77 in 2019. Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased to $1.13 over the $1.05 in 2019.

A reconciliation from net income and diluted earnings per share to adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share is provided below.

Liquidity
In addition to $765 million in cash balances as of March 31, 2020, the Company had $757 million of available borrowing capacity under its $1.65 billion revolving credit facility. The Company's net total leverage ratio, as defined in its credit agreement, of 4.50 to 1.0 as of March 31 was in compliance with the covenant requiring a ratio of no greater than 5.75 to 1.0. The ratio is calculated at the end of each quarter using debt and cash balances as of the end of the quarter and Consolidated EBITDA, as defined in the agreement, for the most recent four quarters. The required net total leverage ratio under the agreement reduces to 5.0 to 1.0 at December 31, 2020 and to 4.50 to 1.0 at December 31, 2022. The revolving credit facility matures in December 2024.

Outlook
Given the uncertainty of the impact and duration of the coronavirus pandemic, the Company has withdrawn its previous guidance for 2020. The dynamic nature of the situation makes it difficult for management to estimate projected performance of its businesses at this time, particularly over the near term.

In direct response to the pandemic, the Company has taken specific actions to ensure the safety of its employees. Following the implementation of travel and visitor restrictions in February, Crown continues to update its policies as new information becomes available. The Company has taken increased safety measures in its manufacturing facilities to ensure the safety of its employees and the products they produce. In addition, as many Crown employees as possible are working remotely.

The Company's products are a vital part of the support system to its customers and consumers. In addition to manufacturing containers that provide protection for food and beverages, Crown also produces closures for baby food, aerosol containers for cleaning and sanitizing products and numerous products that provide for the safe and secure transportation of goods in transit.

The Company is working to ensure that its 239 manufacturing facilities around the world remain operational and are equipped with the resources required to meet continually evolving customer demand by delivering high quality products in a safe and timely manner. Crown is actively monitoring and managing supply chain challenges, including coordinating with the Company's suppliers to identify and mitigate potential areas of risk and manage inventories.

The Company's previously announced Board-led strategic review is ongoing and a further update will be provided in due course.

Non-GAAP Measures
Segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net leverage ratio, adjusted net income, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA are not defined terms under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (non-GAAP measures). Non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for income from operations, net income, diluted earnings per share, effective tax rates, cash flow or leverage ratio data prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP and may not be comparable to calculations of similarly titled measures by other companies.

The Company views segment income as the principal measure of the performance of its operations and adjusted free cash flow and net leverage ratio as the principal measure of its liquidity. The Company considers all of these measures in the allocation of resources. Adjusted free cash flow has certain limitations, however, including that it does not represent the residual cash flow available for discretionary expenditures since other non-discretionary expenditures, such as mandatory debt service requirements, are not deducted from the measure. The amount of mandatory versus discretionary expenditures can vary significantly between periods. The Company believes that adjusted net income, the adjusted effective tax rate and adjusted diluted earnings per share are useful in evaluating the Company's operations as these measures are adjusted for items that affect comparability between periods. The Company believes that adjusted free cash flow and net leverage ratio provide meaningful measures of liquidity and a useful basis for assessing the Company's ability to fund its activities, including the financing of acquisitions, debt repayments, share repurchases or possible future dividends. Segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net leverage ratio, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted net income, adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA are derived from the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations and Cash Flows and Consolidated Balance Sheets, as applicable, and reconciliations to segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net leverage ratio, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted net income, adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA can be found within this release.

Conference Call
The Company will hold a conference call tomorrow, April 21, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. (EDT) to discuss this news release. Forward-looking and other material information may be discussed on the conference call. The dial-in numbers for the conference call are 630-395-0194 or toll-free 888-324-8108 and the access password is "packaging." A live webcast of the call will be made available to the public on the internet at the Company's website, www.crowncork.com. A replay of the conference call will be available for a one-week period ending at midnight on April 28. The telephone numbers for the replay are 402-220-0191 or toll free 800-331-1949.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Except for historical information, all other information in this press release consists of forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors, including the future impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the Company's operations, including the Company's ability to continue to operate its plants, distribute its products, and maintain its supply chain; the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on demand for the Company's products; the future impact of currency translation; the continuation of performance and market trends in 2020, including consumer preference for beverage cans and increasing global beverage can demand; future demand for food cans; and the Company's ability to successfully complete its previously announced capacity expansion projects and begin production within expected timelines, including any delays related to the pandemic, that may cause actual results to be materially different from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause the statements made in this press release or the actual results of operations or financial condition of the Company to differ are discussed under the caption "Forward Looking Statements" in the Company's Form 10-K Annual Report for the year ended December 31, 2019 and in subsequent filings made prior to or after the date hereof. The Company does not intend to review or revise any particular forward-looking statement in light of future events.

Crown Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is a leading global supplier of rigid packaging products to consumer marketing companies, as well as transit and protective packaging products, equipment and services to a broad range of end markets. World headquarters are located in Yardley, Pennsylvania.

For more information, contact:
Thomas A. Kelly, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, (215) 698-5341
Thomas T. Fischer, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Affairs, (215) 552-3720

Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations, Balance Sheets, Statements of Cash Flows, Segment Information and Supplemental Data follow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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SOURCE Crown Holdings, Inc.