Paul Coulson’s Ardagh Group has lowered its full-year earnings forecast for its glass bottles business again, adding to the challenge faced by the packaging giant as it weighs options to cut its $12.4 billion (€11.5 billion) debt pile.
The multinational glass and metal containers manufacturer for the drinks industry, built up by Irish financier Paul Coulson over the past 25 years, cut the full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) projection for its glass bottles unit to $600 million from the $680 million it had forecast in July. Prior to that, it had been pointing to a figure of as high as $780 million.
This was driven by a drop in glass volume sales in North America, amid a downturn in the region’s beer and wine markets, and a slower – than-expected rebound in demand in Europe following a slump in sales late last year.
The lowered forecast was outlined by group chairman Herman Troskie on a call with debt investors on Thursday afternoon, after the company reported quarterly figures.
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Still, Ardagh’s New York Stock Exchange-listed cans unit, Ardagh Metal Packaging (AMP), in which the group holds a 75 per cent stake, has grown more confident in its full-year outlook, now predicting that its ebitda will come in between $650 million and $660 million – after nudging the lower end of its previous range up by $10 million.
Shares in AMP fell 10 per cent to $3.77.
Mr Troskie, who took over the helm late last year as Mr Coulson stepped down as chairman, reiterated that Ardagh is looking at options to reduce the burden of its debt.
“We continue to review our capital structure and will update in due course,” he said. “Our objective remains to put a sustainable capital structure in place.”
Mr Coulson remains on the board of the group and holds an effective 36 per cent stake.
Total borrowings at Ardagh Group, the operating business, stood at $10.8 billion at the end of September.
However, the ultimate parent group at the top of the Ardagh corporate tree – Luxembourg-based ARD Holdings SA – is estimated to have about $12.4 billion of borrowings.
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