Domtar Corporation (TSX:UFS) delivered second-quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of 57 cents per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 87 cents. The bottom-line figure also marked a decline from the prior-year quarter’s earnings of 65 cents.
Including one-time items, Domtar reported earnings per share of 28 cents in the quarter, significantly down 58.8% from 68 cents per share recorded in the year-ago quarter.
Consolidated sales went down 2.6% year over year to $1,317 million, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,389 million.
Operational Highlight
Consolidated adjusted operating income came in at $57 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $59 million. The operating income during the June-end quarter declined due to higher maintenance costs, lower productivity, higher fixed costs, lower volume in paper, and elevated raw material and freight costs. However, these factors were partly offset by lower selling, general and administrative expenses.
Domtar Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Segmental Performance
Quarterly revenues of the Pulp and Paper segment came in at $1,096 million, down 2.4% year over year. Elevated level of outages affected productivity in the Pulp and Paper segment during the second quarter. Adjusted operating income for the segment was $62 million in the reported quarter, down from $76 million recorded in the year-earlier quarter.
Further, sales in the Personal Care segment declined 4% year over year to $237 million. Permanent closure of the Waco, TX facility, resulting in lower overall production volumes, thwarted the segment’s performance. The adjusted operating income for the segment came in at $5 million, up from the $2 million reported in the comparable period last year.
Balance Sheet & Cash Flow
At the end of the second quarter, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $93 million, down from $111 million recorded at the end of 2018. Long-term debt was $824 million as of Jun 30, 2019, compared with $853 million as of Dec 31, 2018.
Domtar generated $174 million of cash from operating activities during the six-month period ended 2019, compared with $267 million reported in the comparable period last year.
Outlook
The company expects improved paper volume for the current year. The Personal Care segment is anticipated to benefit from its margin-improvement plan and increased sales volume, aided by a strong order book. Nevertheless, Domtar forecasts volatility in the softwood and fluff pulp markets, and cost inflation for the ongoing year.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Domtar currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are SSR Mining Inc (NASDAQ:SSRM) , Alamos Gold Inc (TSX:AGI) and Arconic Inc (NYSE:ARNC) , all sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
SSR Mining has an expected earnings growth rate of 134.8% for 2019. The company’s shares have surged 58.7% in the past year.
Alamos Gold has a projected earnings growth rate of a whopping 260% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained 35.6% in a year’s time.
Arconic has an estimated earnings growth rate of 38.2% for the ongoing year. The stock has moved up 12.2% over the past year.
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