HELSINKI (dpa-AFX) - Stora Enso Oyj reported that its third quarter net results attributable to owners of the parent climbed to 198 million euros or 0.25 euros per share from 88 million euros or 0.11 euros per share last year. Earnings per share excluding fair valuations rose to 0.26 euros from 0.10 euros in the prior year.
But quarterly adjusted EBIT declined by 28 percent to 126 million euros, compared to 175 million euros in the previous period. This decrease was largely due to the ramp-up of the new line in Oulu, which negatively impacted the third-quarter result by 45 million euros. As a result, the adjusted EBIT margin fell to 5.5 percent from 7.8 percent.
Sales for the third quarter rose by 1 percent to 2.283 billion euros, up from 2.261 billion euros last year, primarily driven by the acquisition of Junnikkala and the continued ramp-up of the consumer board line at the Oulu site.
Stora Enso expects market demand to remain subdued and challenging, affected by low consumer confidence and heightened macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.
The ramp-up of the consumer board line at the Oulu site in Finland is progressing, with production volumes gradually increasing. However, output remains slightly behind the original schedule. Despite this delay, the goal of reaching EBITDA break-even by the end of the year remains unchanged. Consequently, the EBIT impact for the fourth quarter is now expected to be more significant than initially projected-estimated at a negative 15 million euros to 35 million euros. For the full year, the EBIT impact is anticipated to be around negative 120 to 140 million euros. The line is expected to reach full capacity by 2027.
Beginning in the fourth quarter, the completed divestment of forest assets in Sweden will have an annual negative effect of 25 million euros on the Forest segment's results, translating to roughly 6 million euros per quarter.
The Group's capital expenditure forecast for the full year 2025 is projected to be between 730 and 790 million euros.
Fourth quarter profitability will also be affected by planned maintenance stops, which are expected to be at similar levels as those seen in the third quarter.
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