Smurfit-Stone reports net quarterly income of $65 million

Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation has reported net income of $65 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2010, compared with net income attributable to common stockholders of $1.41 billion, for the second quarter of 2010, and $65 million, for the third quarter of 2009.

Patrick J. Moore, Smurfit-Stone's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "I am pleased with our strong third quarter performance, which benefitted from favorable pricing trends and lower input costs driven primarily by fiber. Importantly, we are realizing cost savings and efficiency improvements from our financial restructuring, investments in our core business, and focused efforts such as our Operational Excellence initiative. I'm proud of the efforts and commitment of our employees which contributed significantly to the strong quarter. I view the positive momentum in the quarter as an important step in delivering on the accelerated performance improvement we are pursuing."

Smurfit-Stone expects moderately lower sequential earnings in the fourth quarter from the third quarter, as continued price improvement will be more than offset by additional mill maintenance costs, normal seasonal demand declines and higher energy usage. The company also expects higher recycled fiber costs in the fourth quarter.

In addition to the major cost reduction focus in the business operations, Smurfit-Stone is undertaking a significant reduction in its selling, general and administrative costs, primarily through reductions of more than 450 positions for full-year 2010, or more than 14 percent of its workforce in these functions. Smurfit-Stone expects to realize net savings of more than $50 million in 2011 as compared to 2010, and has identified opportunities for additional savings in 2012.

Source: Smurfit-Stone