CCL Industries (CCL-B) Q1 2025 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q1 2025 sales rose 8.6% year-over-year to $1,887.1M, with 3.8% organic growth, 1.4% from acquisitions, and 3.4% from currency translation.

• Net earnings increased 8% year-over-year to $207.4M, with record adjusted basic EPS of $1.18, up 9.3%.

• Free cash flow from operations improved to $39.1M, with $156.3M returned to shareholders via $100M buybacks and $56.3M dividends.

• Operating income increased 12.4% to $316.9M, with a 16.8% margin.

• $113.6M invested in capex in Q1 2025.

Financial highlights

• Gross profit up 11% to $572.1M; gross margin improved year-over-year.

• Adjusted EBITDA rose to $408.0M, with a 21.6% margin.

• Effective tax rate steady at 24.7%; tax expense increased to $68.0M.

• Net finance expense was $18.5M, slightly higher than last year.

• LTM free cash flow rose to $652.6M from $569.1M year-over-year.

Outlook and guidance

• Management expects continued sales growth and robust liquidity to support global expansion.

• CCL segment backlog solid entering Q2; April orders stable and strong.

• Avery faces uncertainty for the U.S. back-to-school season due to tariff impacts.

• Checkpoint expected to see continued RFID growth; Innovia to improve with German plant scale-up in Q2.

• FX translation expected to be a modest tailwind for Q2 2025.