International Paper Reports Q2 Earnings

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Press release from the issuing company

Strong Earnings Driven by Outstanding North American Industrial Packaging Results
Generated Substantial Free Cash Flow

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - International Paper (NYSE: IP) today reported second quarter 2015 net earnings attributable to common shareholders of $227 million ($0.54 per share) compared with net earnings of $313 million ($0.74 per share) in the first quarter of 2015 and $161 million ($0.37 per share) in the second quarter of 2014. Operating Earnings were $409 million ($0.97 per share) in the second quarter of 2015, compared with $357 million ($0.84 per share) in the first quarter of 2015 and $400 million ($0.93 per share) in the second quarter of 2014. Amounts in all periods include the impact of special items, if any, non-operating pension expense and discontinued operations.

Diluted Earnings Per Share Attributable to International Paper Shareholders

	Second Quarter 2015		First Quarter 2015		Second Quarter 2014
Net Earnings	$	0.54	$	0.74	$	0.37
Less – Discontinued Operations (Gain) Loss	—		—		0.03
Net Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations	0.54		0.74		0.40
Add Back – Net Special Items Expense	0.36		—		0.44
Add Back – Non-Operating Pension Expense	0.07		0.10		0.09
Operating Earnings*	$	0.97	$	0.84	$	0.93

*	Operating Earnings is defined as net earnings from continuing operations attributable to International Paper Company (GAAP) excluding special items and non-operating pension expense.

Quarterly net sales were $5.7 billion in the second quarter of 2015 compared with $5.5 billion in the first quarter of 2015 and $5.9 billion in the second quarter of 2014. Revenues continue to be negatively impacted by foreign exchange translation.

Business segment operating profits before special items in the second quarter of 2015 were $663 million, compared with $623 million in the first quarter of 2015 and $686 million in the second quarter of 2014.

Free cash flow was $511 million in the second quarter. Cash from operations was $115 million, including the impact of a $750 million contribution to the Company's pension plan.

"IP delivered another strong quarter of earnings and free cash flow" said Mark Sutton, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our North American Industrial Packaging business performed very well on seasonally higher sales and increased margins. Operations around the globe ran well and we executed our heaviest quarter of maintenance outages safely and effectively. As we look forward, we are confident in our ability to continue to deliver strong results and remain focused on long term value creation for our shareholders."

Full Release