Amcor Limited

From IntFX

See also: AMC for realtime information.

Amcor is one of the leading global packaging companies. It is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Amcor’s packaging businesses is spread across five geographies: Australasia, North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia. The Company has 217 manufacturing sites in 34 countries, and derives about 80% of its earnings from outside Australasia. The Company employs approximately 24,000 people. Amcor operates through five business segments:

• Amcor Australasia: Corrugated boxes, cartons, folding cartons; steel and aluminum cans for foods, beverages and household products; flexible packaging; plastic and metal closures; glass wine bottles; and multi-wall sacks

• Amcor Asia: Tobacco carton packaging; flexible plastic packaging

• Amcor PET Packaging: Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) packaging for a broad range of predominantly beverage and food products, and plastic caps for a wide variety of applications

• Amcor Flexibles Group (includes Amcor Rentsch): Flexible and film packaging in the food and beverage and pharmaceutical sectors. Specialty folding cartons for tobacco, confectionery and cosmetics

• Amcor Sunclipse: It is the distribution unit that purchases, warehouses, sells and delivers a wide variety of products. The business also manufactures corrugated, mostly fibre-based, specialty product packaging

[edit] History

Amcor evolved from being an Australian and New Zealand based paper and packaging company n 1995 to a focused international packaging company. While Australia and New Zealand accounted for approximately 75% of its sales in 1995, the region accounts for only 20% for the total group sales in 2006. In order to focus on growing it global packaging operations, the Company demerged its printing papers business in April 2000. Amcor also divested its 45% interest in Kimberly-Clark Australia, engaged in tissue and personal care products, in June 2002. Subsequently, the Company acquired the PET and Closures businesses of Schmalbach-Lubeca in July 2002 establishing Amcor as the largest PET manufacturer globally.

[edit] Strategy

Amcor has deployed “The Way Forward” program to achieve its strategic priorities which include gaining strong market positions, becoming customer and market focused, achieve low cost and maintain capital discipline. The Company is executing its program by improving its underperforming businesses, and selling non-core businesses. Amcor uses both internal growth and growth through acquisitions to achieve its target market positions.

[edit] Financial and operational performance

In 2007, the Company’s revenues declined 4.9% to $10,875.2 million from $11,439.3 million in 2005. However, Amcor’s EBITDA margin increased marginally to 11.0% in 2007 from 10.9% in 2006. Similarly, net profit margin before exceptional items increased to 3.7% in 2007 from 3.5% in 2006.