Box maker Smurfit Westrock's profit hit by bad weather, shares fall

DUBLIN, April 30 (Reuters) - Smurfit Westrock's SW.N core profit fell by more than the cardboard box maker and analysts expected in the first quarter, partly due to adverse weather conditions in North America.

Shares of the world's biggest supplier of paper-based packaging were 5.9% lower on the London Stock Exchange at 1125 GMT, while in its primary New York Stock Exchange listing they were down 2.1% in premarket trading.

Smurfit Westrock also said it was undertaking a review of its secondary London listing that could result in it leaving the exchange. This will likely be completed during May, the Irish-headquartered company added.

The company reported first-quarter adjusted core earnings (EBITDA) of $1.07 billion, having forecast a fall to between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion from the $1.25 billion it posted in the same period in 2025.

Analysts polled by LSEG SmartEstimate expected first-quarter core earnings of $1.16 billion. Smurfit said adverse weather had resulted in a $65 million hit to EBITDA in the first quarter when its margins were also weaker than a year ago.

However, the group maintained its forecast for full-year core profit growth of between $5 billion and $5.3 billion, saying the generally better operating environment should lead to volume growth in the second half of the year.

Smurfit Westrock said increased demand across all its paper grades allowed it to raise containerboard prices in its two main markets of North America and Europe in both March and April.