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Amcor plc: Q2 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q2 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 3 February 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 4 kept. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Sales rose 68% on Berry: Net sales were $5,449 million, up 68% reported and 63% in constant currency, with about $2.2 billion of acquired sales net of divestments. Volumes were about 1.5% lower. Source
  • Adjusted EBIT rose 66%: Adjusted EBIT was $603 million, up 66% reported, including about $210 million of acquired EBIT net of divestments. The remaining 4% reflects synergies and cost programs, partly offset by volumes. Source
  • Berry synergies added about $50 million: Synergy benefits from Berry of about $50 million, plus cost and productivity programs, were partly offset by lower volumes in adjusted EBIT. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 15.2%: Adjusted EBITDA margin was 15.2%, up from 14%. Adjusted EBIT margin was 11.1%, flat year on year. Source
  • Restructuring costs drove GAAP gap: GAAP restructuring, transaction and integration expenses were $118 million against $33 million a year earlier, mainly Berry integration costs. Source
  • Free cash flow $289 million: Free cash flow was $289 million after about $69 million of Berry transaction, restructuring and integration costs. Six-month free cash outflow was $53 million. Source
  • Portfolio optimization progressing: Management said portfolio optimization actions are progressing well and positioned Amcor as the global leader in consumer packaging and dispensing solutions. Source

“Our Q2 financial performance was in line with expectations in a challenging volume environment.”

Amcor CEO Peter Konieczny

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Adjusted EPS SourceFiscal year ending June 30, 2026$4.00 to $4.15Kept
Adjusted EPS growth SourceFiscal year ending June 30, 202612% to 17% constant currency growthKept
Pre-tax synergy benefits from Berry SourceFiscal year ending June 30, 2026at least $260 millionKept
Free cash flow SourceFiscal year ending June 30, 2026$1.8 billion to $1.9 billionKept

What changed from last quarter

  • Guidance kept: Fiscal 2026 guidance was reaffirmed; the adjusted EPS range was restated for the reverse split and other figures were kept. Source
  • New: A 1-for-5 reverse stock split of ordinary shares took effect January 14, 2026, reducing authorized shares to 1,800,000,000 and raising par value to $0.05. Source
  • New: The company cited manufacturing inefficiencies and other management issues as supporting a decision to close three facilities in Asia. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Sales rose 68% on Berry: Net sales were $5,449 million, up 68% reported and 63% in constant currency, with about $2.2 billion of acquired sales net of divestments. Volumes were about 1.5% lower. Source
  • Adjusted EBIT rose 66%: Adjusted EBIT was $603 million, up 66% reported, including about $210 million of acquired EBIT net of divestments. The remaining 4% reflects synergies and cost programs, partly offset by volumes. Source
  • Adjusted EPS up 7%, GAAP EPS lower: Adjusted EPS was $0.86, up 7%. GAAP diluted EPS was $0.38 against $0.56, with GAAP net income of $177 million including acquisition-related costs. Source
  • First-half sales up 70%: Six-month net sales were $11,194 million, up 70%, including about $4.5 billion of acquired sales. Six-month adjusted EBIT was $1,290 million, up 77%. Source

Segments and regions

  • Flexible sales and margin steady: Global Flexible Packaging Solutions net sales were $3,188 million, up 27% reported, with adjusted EBIT of $402 million and a 12.6% margin against 12.8%. Source
  • Rigid margin up 280 basis points: Global Rigid Packaging Solutions net sales were $2,264 million and adjusted EBIT $228 million. The 10.1% margin was 280 basis points higher, which the company linked to the improved quality of the combined business. Source
  • Rigid price/mix and non-core drag: After acquisitions, pass-through and currency, rigid net sales were down 11%, reflecting price/mix and lower non-core business volumes. Source

“Performance through the first half of the year supports our confidence in reaffirming fiscal 2026 earnings and free cash flow guidance.”

Amcor CEO Peter Konieczny

Products and customers

  • Flexible pet food and meat grew: Flexible volumes were higher in pet food and meat proteins, offset by lower volumes in other nutrition, liquids and unconverted film and foil. Source
  • Rigid pet food and beauty gained: Rigid volumes were higher in pet food and beauty and wellness, with specialty containers also up, offset by softer healthcare and foodservice volumes. Source
  • Price/mix had no material effect: The company estimated that price/mix had no material impact on total net sales, and pass-through of raw material costs also had none. Source

Costs, margins and pricing

  • Berry synergies added about $50 million: Synergy benefits from Berry of about $50 million, plus cost and productivity programs, were partly offset by lower volumes in adjusted EBIT. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 15.2%: Adjusted EBITDA margin was 15.2%, up from 14%. Adjusted EBIT margin was 11.1%, flat year on year. Source
  • Restructuring costs drove GAAP gap: GAAP restructuring, transaction and integration expenses were $118 million against $33 million a year earlier, mainly Berry integration costs. Source
  • Lower tax rate on discrete items: Adjusted tax expense was $63 million, an effective rate of 13.6%. Management attributed the lower rate against 18.6% last year to discrete tax events in the current period. Source

Demand and regional volumes

  • Flexible volumes lower in two regions: Flexible volumes were lower across North America and Europe. Emerging market volumes were in line with the prior year. Source
  • Rigid Europe volumes lower: Rigid volumes were lower across Europe, partly offset by volume growth across emerging markets, primarily in Latin America. Source
  • Rigid North America volumes flat: Rigid volumes in North America were in line with the prior year, according to the company's estimate. Source

Cash, interest and shareholder returns

  • Free cash flow $289 million: Free cash flow was $289 million after about $69 million of Berry transaction, restructuring and integration costs. Six-month free cash outflow was $53 million. Source
  • Cash before acquisition costs up: For the six months, cash flow before funding acquisition-related cash costs rose about $170 million compared with last year. Source
  • Interest expense up $73 million: Interest expense was $73 million higher than last year, mainly from acquisition-related net debt. Adjusted net interest expense was $140 million. Source
  • Quarterly dividend 65.0 cents: The Board declared a quarterly dividend of 65.0 cents per share, against 63.75 cents in the same quarter last year. Source
  • Dividend equal to prior 13.0 cents: The prior quarter's dividend of 13.0 cents, declared before the reverse split, equals the 65.0 cents declared now after restatement.
  • ASX holders receive 93.0 cents: CDI holders on the ASX will receive an unfranked dividend of 93.0 Australian cents per share. Source

Strategy and leadership

  • Portfolio optimization progressing: Management said portfolio optimization actions are progressing well and positioned Amcor as the global leader in consumer packaging and dispensing solutions. Source
  • CEO and CFO transition costs named: The non-GAAP exclusions now name expenses related to the CEO and CFO transition. The prior release named only the CEO transition. Source
  • Synergies up from $38 million: First-quarter synergies were about $38 million, at the upper end of the expected range. This quarter's release reports $55 million.

Coming up, as management said on 3 February 2026

  • Dividend record and payment dates: The record date is February 25, 2026 and the payment date is March 17, 2026 for all shareholders. Ex-dividend dates are February 24 for CDIs and February 25 for NYSE shares. Source
  • Guidance excludes possible portfolio actions: Fiscal 2026 guidance reflects twelve months of Berry ownership and excludes potential portfolio optimization actions that may be completed during the year. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Total volume change, excluding non-core and divested businesses Sourceapproximately 1.5% lower
Global Flexible Packaging Solutions volume change Sourceapproximately 2% lower
Global Rigid Packaging Solutions volume change, excluding non-core and divested businesses Sourceflat

Risks management discussed

  • Demand: Lower volumes, mainly in non-core businesses, partly offset synergy and cost gains in adjusted EBIT. Source
  • Operational: The company reported $15 million of inventory discrepancies, including prior-period errors, tied to manufacturing inefficiencies and management issues. Source
  • Financial: Net debt was $14,081 million at December 31, 2025, up from $13,271 million at June 30, 2025. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • On track: Management said first-half performance supports reaffirming fiscal 2026 earnings and free cash flow guidance. Source
  • On track: Free cash flow of $289 million was described as in line with expectations. Source
  • Not stated: Acquisition synergies of $55 million were described as at the upper end of expectations, and targets were reaffirmed. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.