Huhtamäki, a Finnish food packaging company, has reported a 1% decrease in net sales for the third quarter (Q3) of financial year 2024 (FY24), with figures standing at €1.02bn ($1.10bn) compared with €1.03bn in the same period of the previous fiscal year.  

In Q2 FY24, the company’s net sales dropped by 1% to €1.03bn.  

Despite this slight decline in sales, the company experienced a notable increase in earnings per share (EPS), which rose by 33% to €0.57 in Q3 FY24 from €0.42 in Q3 FY23. 

The company's earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) also saw an uplift, reporting a 2% increase to €95.1m in Q3 FY24 from €92.8m in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.  

Huhtamäki's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation followed a similar trend, with a 2% rise to €148.4m in Q3 FY24 from €145.4m in Q3 FY23. 

Looking at the first three quarters of the fiscal year as a whole, Huhtamäki's net sales decreased by 2% to €3.06bn compared with €3.13bn in the same period last year.  

However, the reported EPS for Q1-Q3 FY24 showed a significant increase of 34% to €1.53, up from €1.14 in the same period of the previous fiscal year.  

The company's EBIT for the first three quarters of FY24 was €277m, marking an 18% increase from €235m in Q1-Q3 FY23. 

Meanwhile, Huhtamäki's capital expenditure during the first three quarters of this financial year amounted to €134m.  

Huhtamäki president and CEO Charles Héaulmé said: “Market conditions started to improve during the third quarter. While the situation improved compared to the first half of the year, the pace was moderate with differences between categories and geographies. 

“We have continued to make progress on the three-year €100m efficiency programme launched in 2023. All activities executed thus far have positively impacted our profit during 2024.” 

Huhtamaki said North America continued to deliver profitable growth during the quarter, maintaining a better-adjusted EBIT margin than other regions.  

The company also saw continuous improvement in flexible packaging profitability while low demand had a negative impact on foodservice E-A-O margins.  

Huhtamaki noted that fibre packaging profitability was weighed on by a lag in pricing due to an increase in raw material costs. 

In June this year, Huhtamaki announced the consolidation of its Flexible Packaging manufacturing sites in the United Arab Emirates.