The Amcor PLC (ASX: AMC) share price has fallen lower after the company reported results for the six months to December 2019 this morning. Amcor shares hit the ground at $16.47 after market open today but have trended lower ever since and are currently going for $16.04 at the time of writing (down 0.4%).
Still, shareholders don't have too much to complain about on this front. Amcor shares are up 4% since the start of the year and 18% in the last four months.
What did Amcor announce this morning?
It was a fairly solid set of numbers from Amcor for the financial year to December.
Net sales rose to $6.184 billion (all figures stated are in US dollars unless specified), which was a 36% rise on the prior corresponding period.
Adjusted earnings came in at $699 million which is a rise of 4.4% in currency-adjusted terms. Meanwhile, GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) net income came in at $252 million.
That translates into 29.2 cents in adjusted earnings-per-share (15.5 cents non-adjusted) – a rise of 10.7%.
On the dividend side, Amcor announced a quarterly payout of 11.5 cents per share, which the company advises will translate into a A$17.1 cents per share payout for ASX investors (unfranked). This payout will go ex-dividend on March 3, 2020 to be paid on March 24.
Amcor notes that this dividend payment is only a portion of cash the company has returned to investors in the period, which also includes a $500 million share buy-back program ($223 million already completed). The company expects this to be finalised by the end of the financial year.
Management commentary
Amcor CEO Ron Delia had this to say on the results:
"Amcor delivered a good first half result and our outlook for fiscal 2020 adjusted EPS growth has improved to 7-10%… Amcor's financial profile remains strong and will be enhanced further as we realise the full financial benefits from the Bemis acquisition.
With over $1 billion of annual free cash flow, we are well placed to generate strong returns for shareholders by simultaneously investing in our core business, paying a compelling dividend, buying back shares and growing through acquisitions".
Outlook for Amcor
As outlined by Mr Delia, Amcor is expecting EPS growth of between 7% and 10% for the full 2020 fiscal year (it was previously a range of 5-10%), which implies a range of 62-64 cents per share in earnings for FY20.
The company notes that exchange rates are likely to have a negative impact on earnings for the remainder of the year, although it doesn't foresee this impact at more than one cent per share.
