Smurfit Westrock Posts $1.205 Billion in Adjusted Earnings, Missing Estimates
Key Facts
Smurfit Westrock reported results on October 28 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, posting adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $1.205 billion, according to the company statement published by Business Wire. Net sales were $8.16 billion, while a Seeking Alpha headline cited a miss of about $120 million against estimates. Non-GAAP earnings per share were $0.45, down $0.12 from analysts’ estimates, according to the same headline. Reuters estimates reported via Investing.com before the announcement pointed to earnings per share of $0.60 and revenue of $8.27 billion. Adjusted earnings also came in below management’s prior quarterly forecast of about $1.3 billion. The results therefore fell short of both market estimates and management’s target for operating profitability.
The company posted net income of $219 million, with a net income margin of 2.7%, in the third quarter. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization had a margin of 14.8%, with the measure totaling $1.205 billion. Net cash from operating activities was $874 million, while the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4523 per ordinary share. These figures provide a picture of profitability and liquidity alongside the adjusted earnings measure for which management had previously set a higher quarterly target. In the third quarter of 2025, adjusted earnings were $1.302 billion, net income was $245 million and net sales were $8.003 billion. Compared with that quarter, adjusted earnings and net income were lower in the current quarter, while net sales increased.
Second-quarter 2026 results showed earnings per share of $0.35 and revenue of $8.03 billion, according to a Reuters report published via Investing.com before the latest results were announced. The report said expected annual input costs in North America and Europe had increased by $300 million compared with the company’s forecast three months earlier. In its second-quarter results, the company said higher input costs, particularly freight, had weighed on performance despite strong paper demand. In third-quarter 2025 results, CEO Tony Smurfit said performance was in line with adjusted earnings guidance, citing improved operations and trading in North America and strong positions in other regions. The company also said at the time that its corrugated packaging operations were focused on value rather than volume and were exiting uneconomic business. Those earlier comments put the current quarter’s figures in the context of costs and operational improvement efforts the company had previously discussed.
In July, management forecast adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of about $1.3 billion for the third quarter and set a range of $4.9 billion to $5.1 billion for 2026. The quarter’s actual figure was $1.205 billion, below the company’s quarterly forecast. The results reported here did not include an update to the full-year outlook, so the range of $4.9 billion to $5.1 billion remains the annual guidance management announced in July. The company’s shares closed at $42.54 on October 27, before the results were released. The company announced the results the following day, after the quarter ended on September 30. It also declared the quarterly dividend of $0.4523 per ordinary share in its results announcement.