Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) reported lower adjusted earnings for the second quarter of 2026 compared with the prior year, even as sales and EBITDA increased, with management citing strong corrugated demand, higher freight costs and contributions from the recently acquired Greif containerboard business.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Mark Kowlzan said the company reported second-quarter net income of $192 million, or $2.15 per share. Excluding special items, net income was $210 million, or $2.35 per share, compared with $224 million, or $2.48 per share, in the second quarter of 2025. Net sales rose to $2.5 billion from $2.2 billion a year earlier, while total company EBITDA excluding special items increased to $486 million from $451 million.
Excluding special items, earnings declined by $0.13 per share from the year-ago quarter. Kowlzan said legacy business earnings were down $0.27 per share, partly offset by $0.14 per share of earnings from the acquired Greif business. The legacy decline was driven by several cost pressures, including higher freight, corporate and other expenses, lower price and mix in packaging, higher labor and operating costs, and higher fiber costs. Those headwinds were partly offset by higher production and sales volumes in packaging and paper, lower maintenance outage expense, and improved paper pricing and mix.
“We exceeded our guidance of $2.33 on the strength of our corrugated volumes, which helped drive cost favorability in areas that we could control and offset higher than forecast costs for freight, recycled fiber, and employee benefits,” Kowlzan said. He added that Greif’s earnings contribution also exceeded expectations.
Packaging Demand Remains Strong
In the packaging segment, EBITDA excluding special items was $489 million on sales of $2.3 billion, resulting in a margin of 21.1%. That compared with EBITDA of $453 million on sales of $2 billion, or a 22.6% margin, in the second quarter of 2025.
The company produced 1.415 million tons of containerboard during the quarter. Legacy mills produced 1.209 million tons, roughly even with the first quarter and 14,000 tons above the prior-year period. Acquired mills produced 206,000 tons, which Kowlzan said significantly exceeded their production in any quarter since the acquisition.
President Thomas Hassfurther said corrugated operations “turned in yet another very strong quarter.” Shipments were up more than 24% in total and per day versus last year, with the legacy business up 4.1% and achieving an all-time record for total quarterly shipments. Hassfurther said demand was very strong across the company’s customer base, with particular strength in e-commerce related to Amazon Prime Day and related customers.
Hassfurther said domestic containerboard and corrugated products prices and mix were $0.11 per share below the second quarter of 2025 but $0.04 per share above the first quarter of 2026. He said the company began realizing the first announced price increase in June, expects most of that increase to roll in during July, and expects the second increase to begin in August with realization split between the third and fourth quarters.
The company reduced export containerboard sales during the quarter to build inventory for its corrugated plants. Export volume was 30,000 tons below the first quarter and 22,000 tons below the second quarter of 2025. Hassfurther said the company was able to meaningfully increase inventories in early July and described the current market environment in one word during the question-and-answer session: “tight.”
Greif Integration Exceeds Expectations
Management said the acquired Greif business contributed $0.14 per share to earnings in the quarter, above expectations. Chief Financial Officer Kent Pflederer said $0.04 of that contribution came from a depreciation benefit tied to measurement-period adjustments to the valuation of fixed assets on the opening balance sheet. Excluding that benefit, Pflederer said the outperformance was driven largely by higher volumes and strong operational performance.
Hassfurther said PCA now views the acquired business as fully integrated and is operating it as one unit with the legacy business. Pflederer said the transition services agreement with Greif will run through the end of the year as the company brings remaining corrugated plants and one mill-related system onto PCA systems. He said three more plants are expected to transition in the third quarter and the final facilities in the fourth quarter.
Pflederer said PCA is on track, and possibly ahead, on Greif-related synergies. He cited mill production improvements and better reliability, as well as integration benefits that are beginning to show in the numbers. He said the company is “probably” on track to exceed a $30 million run rate by year-end.
Paper Segment Posts Higher Margins
The paper segment reported EBITDA excluding special items of $39 million on sales of $157 million, for a 24.9% margin. That compared with EBITDA of $30 million on sales of $146 million, or a 20.8% margin, in the second quarter of 2025.
Kowlzan said paper sales volume was about 3% below the first quarter but about 6% above the second quarter of 2025. Prices and mix were up 2% from both the first quarter of 2026 and the prior-year quarter. He said the company continues to implement previously announced paper price increases and expects to benefit in the third quarter.
Costs, Outages and Capital Spending in Focus
Pflederer said cash provided by operations was $376 million, and free cash flow was $170 million after $206 million of capital expenditures. Other cash uses included dividend payments of $111 million, cash tax payments of $78 million and net interest payments of $54 million. PCA did not repurchase shares during the quarter.
The company continues to forecast 2026 capital expenditures of $840 million to $870 million and depreciation, depletion and amortization of about $710 million, excluding special items. Pflederer said outage expense was $0.34 per share in the second quarter and is now estimated at $0.30 in the third quarter and $0.63 in the fourth quarter, for a full-year total of $1.41 per share.
Kowlzan said operational performance in the quarter was mixed because of production interruptions from utility power outages across the mill system. In response to a question, Pflederer said the outages likely affected production by about 10,000 tons. Kowlzan said the disruptions reinforced the need for gas turbine projects at three key facilities, which he said should reduce or eliminate reliance on the grid at those mills.
Kowlzan said a gas turbine project at the Jackson Mill is in construction and is targeted to come online next year in coordination with Jackson’s annual outage. Projects at Riverville, Virginia, and DeRidder, Louisiana, are moving through environmental permitting, with Kowlzan indicating those units could come online in the first to middle part of 2028.
Third-Quarter Guidance Calls for Higher Earnings
Looking ahead, Kowlzan said PCA expects continued strong packaging demand, increased corrugated products volume due to one additional shipping day, and higher containerboard and corrugated prices as price increases are implemented. He also said the company expects one more day of mill operation, lower production impact from packaging maintenance outages and better operating performance across its containerboard mill system.
In paper, PCA expects lower volume and higher prices due to maintenance at International Falls and continued price increase implementation. Freight costs are expected to remain around the elevated levels seen in May and June, while recycled fiber prices are continuing to rise. The company also expects higher chemical and purchased electricity prices, with wood fiber and natural gas relatively flat.
PCA guided for third-quarter earnings of $2.91 per share, excluding special items.
About Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG)
Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE: PKG) is a leading North American manufacturer of containerboard and corrugated packaging products. The company produces a range of paper-based packaging solutions including linerboard, corrugating medium, corrugated shipping containers, retail-ready packaging and point-of-purchase displays. In addition to core packaging products, Packaging Corporation of America offers packaging design, testing and supply-chain services intended to optimize protection, cost and sustainability for customers.
Headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois, the company operates an integrated network of mills and corrugated manufacturing facilities across the United States and serves customers throughout North America in industries such as e-commerce, grocery and food & beverage, consumer packaged goods and industrial markets.
