Graphic Packaging Sales Reach $2.192 Billion as Adjusted Third-Quarter Profit Falls
Key Facts
Graphic Packaging reported net sales of $2.192 billion in the third quarter of 2026, compared with $2.190 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to results announced by the company via PR Newswire. Despite nearly flat revenue, net income fell to $22 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, from $142 million and $0.48 per share a year earlier. Adjusted net income, excluding special and nonrecurring items and amortization of acquired intangible assets, also fell to $67 million, or $0.23 per share, from $172 million and $0.58 per share in the third quarter of 2025. The results underscore the widening gap between stable sales and declining earnings, as costs and pricing pressured the company's margins. The company announced its third-quarter results on November 3, 2026, the scheduled date for its earnings call at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time.
Adjusted EBITDA was $289 million, down $94 million from $383 million in the year-earlier quarter. The margin fell to 13.2% from 17.5%, indicating that the decline in profitability extended beyond net income. The company attributed the drop to $83 million in inflation in input and operating costs and a $15 million negative pricing impact. Lower volume and product mix added $3 million to the pressures. These effects were partly offset by $2 million in favorable operating performance and a favorable currency impact of $5 million, but those factors did not make up for the full decline.
On the sales side, volume and product mix added $19 million, while lower prices reduced revenue by $15 million, and currency movements and other factors had a negative impact of $2 million. Together, these factors produced a $2 million year-over-year increase in net sales, consistent with revenue rising from $2.190 billion to $2.192 billion. Adjusted earnings per share were $0.23, matching the average analyst estimate, while revenue reached $2.19 billion, exceeding an estimate of $2.17 billion, according to Investing.com. The platform said the stock rose 3.10% in premarket trading after the results were released. The company's stock closed at $9.33 on November 2, 2026, according to EL7 data.
Earnings weakness extended into the second quarter of 2026, when net sales fell 1% to $2.188 billion from $2.204 billion a year earlier, and adjusted EBITDA declined to $247 million from $336 million. Chief Executive Robert Reiterbrook said at the time that the adjusted margin had expanded by 50 basis points sequentially from the first quarter, citing production and pricing actions to improve profitability and margins in the second half of the year. In its third-quarter results, the company said the adjusted margin improved sequentially for a second consecutive quarter. The chief executive said commercial excellence and pricing improvement initiatives are expected to contribute in the fourth quarter of 2026, with effects extending into 2027. That puts the sequential improvement alongside a clear year-over-year decline in earnings and margins, while management's outlook hinges on executing those measures.
Graphic Packaging expects 2026 net sales of about $8.6 billion, adjusted EBITDA of about $1.05 billion and adjusted earnings per share of about $0.65. It also maintained its forecast for adjusted cash flow of between $600 million and $700 million, compared with $169 million in 2025. In the first nine months of 2026, net cash from operating activities was $295 million, and adjusted cash flow reached $314 million, an increase of $646 million from the comparable period in 2025. In August, the company had forecast sales at the high end of a range of $8.4 billion to $8.6 billion, adjusted EBITDA at the low end of a range of $1.05 billion to $1.25 billion, and adjusted earnings per share of between $0.65 and $0.90. The company has tentatively set February 2, 2027, as the date for reporting fourth-quarter and full-year 2026 results, making those results the next opportunity to assess the full-year performance.