Silgan Holdings Inc. reported first quarter 2023 net sales of $1.42 billion and net income of $72.0 million as compared to first quarter 2022 net income of $84.9 million.

Adjusted net income per diluted share for the first quarter of 2023 was $0.78, after adjustments increasing net income per diluted share by $0.13. Adjusted net income per diluted share for the first quarter of 2022 was a record $0.79, after adjustments increasing net income per diluted share by $0.03. 

“We’re pleased with our first quarter performance and solid start to the year, as our businesses continued to deliver strong operating performance and successfully overcame headwinds of approximately $0.15 per diluted share from non-operating items of interest expense and foreign currency translation and from the timing of resin cost fluctuations in the first quarter,” said Adam Greenlee, President and CEO. 

“Each of our businesses remains focused and continues to execute on both our near-term and long-term strategic priorities, while delivering best-in-class service to our customers and expected organic volume growth in key markets. 

“In our Dispensing and Specialty Closures business, unit volume increases for dispensing products were led by double digit volume growth in our fragrance and beauty markets. 

“In our Metal Containers business, 3% organic volume growth was driven by strong demand for pet food, soup, and vegetable products. 

“As we look to the full year of 2023, while the timing of our earnings growth will be more weighted to the second half of the year when the year-over-year impact of these headwinds are expected to ease, we are on track to deliver another year of strong organic adjusted EBIT growth, are confirming our estimate of 2023 adjusted earnings per diluted share in the range of $3.95 to $4.15, and believe Silgan is well positioned to continue to deliver significant value for shareholders in 2023 and beyond.

“Finally, on behalf of the nearly 16,000 Silgan employees around the world, we would like to acknowledge and thank our Co-Founders, Phil Silver and Greg Horrigan, for their leadership and vision in building a company filled with a focused and committed team of passionate people who are aligned to fulfill and build upon the legacy they leave behind for all of us.”

First Quarter Results

Net sales for the first quarter of 2023 were $1.42 billion, a decrease of $23.6 million, or 2%, as compared to the same period in the prior year. 

Excluding non-recurring sales associated with Russia (Russia Sales) of $9.5 million in the first quarter of 2022 and the negative impact of foreign currency translation in the first quarter of 2023 of 1%, first quarter 2023 net sales were comparable to the prior year period.

Income before interest and income taxes (EBIT) for the first quarter of 2023 was $131.2 million, a decrease of $12.2 million as compared to $143.4 million for the first quarter of 2022. 

EBIT in the Metal Containers segment of $47.8 million in the first quarter of 2023 was higher than the prior year period. 

EBIT in the Dispensing and Specialty Closures segment of $70.9 million and in the Custom Containers segment of $18.5 million in the first quarter of 2023 were lower than the prior year period. Rationalisation charges were $4.1 million and $1.4 million in the first quarters of 2023 and 2022, respectively. 

Interest and other debt expense before loss on early extinguishment of debt for the first quarter of 2023 was $36.8 million, an increase of $7.5 million as compared to the first quarter of 2022. 

The effective tax rates were 23.8% and 24.6% for the first quarters of 2023 and 2022, respectively. The effective tax rate in 2023 was favourably impacted by higher income generated in more favourable tax jurisdictions.