Stora Enso earnings disappoint as pulp markets begin to cool

HELSINKI, July 22 (Reuters) – Shares in Stora Enso fell 9% on Friday after the Finnish-Swedish forestry company blamed logistical bottlenecks and a cooling in pulp and timber markets. be the source of less dynamic results than expected in the second quarter.

The maker of pulp, packaging, wood building materials and other forest products said its April-June comparable operating profit rose 39% to 505 million euros (513 $.08 million), reflecting strong demand for packaging materials but well below analysts’ forecasts polled by Refinitiv for a 55% rise.

Quarterly sales rose 18% to 3.05 billion euros, below analysts’ expectations for revenue of 2.98 billion euros.

Difficulties in securing containers and freighters have led to delays in deliveries and the shifting of sales “from quarter to quarter”, chief financial officer Seppo Parvi told Reuters.

He added that the company had seen signs of inflation stabilizing but the outlook for energy prices remained uncertain. He also said pulp demand is expected to remain strong in Europe and China.

Stora shares were down 9.12% at 09:05 GMT. They are now down 26% from a 20-year high reached in April.

“The estimate loss actually came entirely from the pulp business, where volumes were impacted by supply chain issues and what appeared to be a slightly soft margin,” the analyst said. Inderes Antti Viljakainen, adding that this fueled investor concerns about easing demand.

Stora maintained its earnings guidance issued in June that said 2022 operating profit should exceed last year’s 1.53 billion euros.

($1 = 0.9843 euros)

Reporting by Essi Lehto; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Kim Coghill and Susan Fenton

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