AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR), a global leader in drug delivery, consumer product dispensing and active material science solutions, today reported first quarter results for 2021.

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First Quarter 2021 Summary

• Reported sales grew 8%; core sales (excluding acquisitions and currency effects) increased 1%
• Strong demand for our innovative food dispensing closures, the passing through of resin costs and currency effects drove double digit growth in reported sales and core sales in the Food + Beverage segment
• Currency effects contributed to reported sales growth in the Pharma segment and core sales were in line with prior year
• Acquisitions and currency effects contributed to reported sales growth in the Beauty + Home segment and core sales declined 3%
• Reported earnings per share totaled $1.24 (an increase of 48% compared to the prior year)
• Reported earnings per share included a non-cash gain of $0.19 per share related to an increase in the fair value of an equity investment
• Adjusted earnings per share, excluding restructuring charges ($0.04 per share) and the gain on an equity investment, totaled $1.09 (an increase of 10% compared to the prior year when neutralizing currency effects)
• Tax expense was reduced in the quarter due to certain benefits, primarily deductible stock-based compensation

First Quarter Results

For the quarter ended March 31, 2021, reported sales increased 8% to $777 million compared to $722 million in the prior year. Core sales, excluding the impacts from changes in currency exchange rates and acquisitions, increased 1%.

Commenting on the quarter, Stephan B. Tanda, President and CEO, said, “The broad range of end markets that we serve makes Aptar a resilient company through economic cycles and the most recent period was no exception. We achieved sales growth in the quarter and an adjusted EBITDA margin comparable to the prior year despite several markets being down.”

Aptar’s Food + Beverage segment turned in a strong performance with increased demand for food dispensing closures as consumers continued to cook at home during the pandemic. In the Pharma segment, increased demand for injectable components and active material science solutions offset declines in the prescription drug and consumer health care markets. With fewer non-critical doctor visits and lower incidences of cold and flu illnesses this season, certain customers have decided to draw down inventory of allergy and other respiratory treatment delivery devices. In the Beauty + Home segment, though sales to the personal care and home care markets increased, primarily due to strong demand for dispensing systems used with sanitizers and cleaning products, sales to the beauty market declined due to the continued pandemic-related low level of retail and duty-free beauty activity.

Aptar reported first quarter earnings per share of $1.24 compared to $0.84 during the same period a year ago, an increase of 48%. Reported earnings per share include a non-cash gain of approximately $0.19 per share related to an increase in the fair value of Aptar’s investment in PureCycle Technologies, Inc. First quarter adjusted earnings per share, excluding restructuring expenses ($0.04 per share) and the gain on the fair value of the equity investment, were $1.09 and increased 10% from the prior year adjusted earnings per share, including comparable exchange rates, of $0.99. Certain tax items, primarily deductible stock-based compensation, reduced first quarter tax expense.

Outlook

Aptar expects earnings per share for the second quarter of 2021, excluding any restructuring expenses and changes in the fair value of equity investments, to be in the range of $0.91 to $0.99 and this guidance is based on an effective tax rate range of 26% to 28%.

“Looking to the second quarter, current underlying demand conditions in our markets are not expected to change dramatically from what we experienced in the first quarter. We anticipate that demand for our prescription drug and consumer health care devices will remain under pressure compared to the prior year as customers continue to work off existing inventories. However, in some of our other markets, we will have easier comparisons to the prior year second quarter which was the period most severely impacted by pandemic lockdowns. We also expect our results to be negatively impacted by the timing of passing through higher resin and other raw material costs. Our positive mid and long-term view is unchanged, based on our strong innovation and customer project pipelines. When we raise our sights past this global, pandemic-induced crisis, the future is quite promising, and we look forward to growing each of our businesses for the long-term benefit of all stakeholders,” said Tanda.

Cash Dividend Increase

As previously announced, Aptar’s Board of Directors increased the quarterly cash dividend by 6% to $0.38 per share. The payment date is May 19, 2021, to stockholders of record as of April 28, 2021.

Open Conference Call

There will be a conference call on Friday, April 30, 2021 at 8:00 a.m. Central Time to discuss the Company’s first quarter results for 2021. The call will last approximately one hour. Interested parties are invited to listen to a live webcast by visiting the Investor Relations page at www.aptar.com. Replay of the conference call can also be accessed for a limited time on the Investor Relations page of the website.

About Aptar

Aptar is a global leader in the design and manufacturing of a broad range of drug delivery, consumer product dispensing and active material science solutions. Aptar’s innovative solutions and services serve a variety of end markets including pharmaceutical, beauty, personal care, home, food and beverage. Using insights, proprietary design, engineering and science to create dispensing, dosing and protective technologies for many of the world’s leading brands, Aptar in turn makes a meaningful difference in the lives, looks, health and homes of millions of patients and consumers around the world. Aptar is headquartered in Crystal Lake, Illinois and has 13,000 dedicated employees in 20 countries. For more information, visit www.aptar.com.

Presentation of Non-GAAP Information

This press release refers to certain non-GAAP financial measures, including current year adjusted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA, which exclude the impact of business transformation charges (restructuring initiatives), acquisition-related costs, certain purchase accounting adjustments related to acquisitions and investments and net investment gains and losses related to observable market price changes on equity securities. Core sales and adjusted earnings per share also neutralize the impact of foreign currency translation effects when comparing current results to the prior year. Non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled non-GAAP financial measures provided by other companies. Aptar’s management believes these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to our investors because they allow for a better period over period comparison of operating results by removing the impact of items that, in management’s view, do not reflect Aptar’s core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures also provide investors with certain information used by Aptar’s management when making financial and operational decisions. Free cash flow is calculated as cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures. We use free cash flow to measure cash flow generated by operations that is available for dividends, share repurchases, acquisitions and debt repayment. We believe that it is meaningful to investors in evaluating our financial performance and measure our ability to generate cash internally to fund our initiatives. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP financial results but should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of income and other information presented herein. A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures is included in the accompanying tables. Our outlook is provided on a non-GAAP basis because certain reconciling items are dependent on future events that either cannot be controlled, such as exchange rates and changes in the fair value of equity investments, or reliably predicted because they are not part of the Company's routine activities, such as restructuring and acquisition costs.

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including certain statements set forth under the “Outlook” section of this press release. Words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “future,” “potential” and other similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “should,” “would” and “could” are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and are based on our beliefs as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to us. Accordingly, our actual results or other events may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements due to known or unknown risks and uncertainties that exist in our operations and business environment including, but not limited to: pandemics, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our global supply chain and our global customers and operations; our ability to preserve organizational culture and maintain employee productivity in the work-from-home environment caused by the current pandemic; the successful integration of acquisitions and the achievement of the expected benefits of acquisitions and investments; the impact of tax reform legislation including changes in tax rates and other tax-related events or transactions that could impact our effective tax rate; the execution of the business transformation plan; economic conditions worldwide including potential deflationary or inflationary conditions or economic downturn or uncertainty in regions we rely on for growth as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic or otherwise; political conditions worldwide; significant fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; changes in customer and/or consumer spending levels; financial conditions of customers and suppliers; consolidations within our customer or supplier bases; fluctuations in the cost of materials, components and other input costs; the availability of raw materials and components; our ability to successfully implement facility expansions and new facility projects; our ability to increase prices, contain costs and improve productivity; changes in capital availability or cost, including interest rate fluctuations; volatility of global credit markets; cybersecurity threats that could impact our networks and reporting systems; fiscal and monetary policies and other regulations; direct or indirect consequences of acts of war or terrorism; and work stoppages due to labor disputes. For additional information on these and other risks and uncertainties, please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the discussion under “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Form 10-K and Form 10-Qs. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

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