International Paper's Q2 2024 Net Earnings Jump to $498 Million

By Bobby Samwell • Friday, July 26 15:25 • Permanent Link

International Paper Company recently released its 10-Q report, revealing a net earnings of $498 million ($1.41 per diluted share) in the second quarter of 2024, compared with $56 million ($0.16 per diluted share) in the first quarter of 2024 and $235 million ($0.68 per diluted share) in the second quarter of 2023. The company operates through two segments, Industrial Packaging and Global Cellulose Fibers, offering a range of products including linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium, saturating kraft, and pulp for various applications.

In the second quarter of 2024, International Paper delivered improved earnings on higher sales prices across the portfolio and higher volumes on improved box demand. The company saw stable to moderately improved industry demand across various customer markets it serves. However, Industrial Packaging volumes performance came in below expectations and continued to lag the overall packaging market. The company realized some additional benefits from its Box Go-to-Market strategy, but it believes that the second quarter performance also reflects the lagging residual effect of under investing in certain areas, resulting in ongoing reliability and capacity issues.

Looking ahead to the third quarter of 2024, International Paper expects price and mix to improve earnings from prior index movements in North America and higher export prices to date. However, the company anticipates lower volume in North America due to one less shipping day versus the second quarter of 2024, along with seasonally lower daily demand.

The company continues to make progress towards its announced acquisition of DS Smith, with the expectation that the transaction will close in the fourth quarter of 2024.

International Paper calculates Adjusted Operating Earnings by excluding the after-tax effect of discontinued operations, non-operating pension expense (income), and net special items from net earnings reported under GAAP. The company generated free cash flow of $311 million and $265 million in the first six months of 2024 and 2023, respectively. Free cash flow is a non-GAAP measure, which equals cash provided by operations less cash invested in capital projects. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved 1.2%, and are now trading at a price of $46.8. If you want to know more, read the company's complete 10-Q report here.

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