Follow

Play Earnings CallPlay Earnings Call

Sappi Limited (SPPJY) Q2 2026 Earnings Call May 7, 2026 9:00 AM EDT

Company Participants

Stephen Binnie – CEO & Executive Director
Michael Haws – Chief Executive Officer of Sappi North America
Marco Eikelenboom – Chief Executive Officer of Sappi Europe
Glen Pearce – CFO & Executive Director
Graeme Wild – CEO of Sappi Southern Africa

Advertisement

Conference Call Participants

James Twyman – Prescient Securities (Pty) Ltd., Research Division
Brian Morgan – Morgan Stanley, Research Division
Sean Ungerer – Chronux Research Pty. Ltd
Detlef Winckelmann – JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division
Saul Casadio – M&G Investment Management Limited

Presentation

Advertisement

Operator

Good day, and welcome to the Sappi FY 2026 Results Call. [Operator Instructions] Please be advised that today’s conference call is being recorded.

I would now like to hand you over to your host today, CEO, Steve Binnie. Please go ahead.

Advertisement

Stephen Binnie
CEO & Executive Director

Thank you, operator, and good day to everybody. Thanks for joining us. As always, I’ll go through the investor [ presentation ], calling out the page numbers as I move along. And to start just on Page 2, just to draw your attention to our comments around forward-looking statements.

Moving to Slide 3, which is a high-level summary of the quarter and the results. And it’s fair to say it’s been a very challenging quarter. And perhaps just focus on some of the larger items that have influenced the performance. And it’s really 2 broad themes. And firstly, it’s selling prices were down across all the regions and linked to the weak market conditions. But more specifically, the DWP price was substantially lower than a year ago market prices, $130 actually lower than a year ago. So that had a substantial impact.

We also — we’ve seen packaging prices globally come under pressure, which has had an impact on our markets even

Advertisement

This article was written by

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of AMZN, GOOG, APP either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

The analysis is provided exclusively for informational purposes and should not be considered professional investment advice. Before investing, please conduct personal in-depth research and utmost due diligence, as there are many risks associated with the trade, including capital loss.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

This story about the April 2026 jobs report is developing and will be updated with further details.

The U.S. economy added jobs at a modest pace in April amid uncertainty surrounding the impact of conflict in the Middle East on the labor market.

What are the key findings of the April 2026 jobs report?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday reported that employers added 115,000 jobs in April. That figure is above the estimates of economists polled by LSEG, who predicted a gain of 62,000 jobs.

The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, which was in line with the expectations of LSEG economists.

Revisions were made to the payroll numbers for the prior two months, with February revised down by 23,000 from a loss of 133,000 to a decline of 156,000; while March’s report was revised up by 7,000 from a gain of 178,000 to 185,000.

Taken together, employment in February and March was 16,000 jobs lower than previously reported.

What sectors added or lost the most jobs in April 2026?

What does the April 2026 jobs report mean for the workforce?

What experts are saying about the April 2026 jobs report

Kalyan Jewellers India on Friday reported a net profit of Rs 409.5 crore for the March quarter of FY26, more than doubling (118.2%) from Rs 187.6 crore recorded in the corresponding period last year.

Revenue from operations rose 66.2% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 10,274.9 crore, compared with Rs 6,181.5 crore in the year-ago quarter.

EBITDA increased 84.2% to Rs 735.7 crore versus Rs 399.4 crore reported a year earlier.

EBITDA margin also improved to 7.2% from 6.5% in the corresponding quarter last year, the company said in a regulatory filing on Friday.

Alongside earnings, the board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 2.50 per equity share of face value Rs 10 each, representing 25% for the financial year ended March 31, 2026.

The proposed dividend is subject to the approval of shareholders at the company’s upcoming Annual General Meeting.
The company reported revenue of Rs 1,157 crore from its international operations in Q4FY26, marking a growth of over 43% compared with Rs 807 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.Profit after tax from the international business stood at Rs 29 crore during the quarter, more than doubling from Rs 14 crore reported in the year-ago period, reflecting a growth of 105%.

The company’s lifestyle jewellery platform Candere recorded revenue of Rs 131 crore and profit of Rs 3 crore in Q4FY26.

Commenting on the performance, Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director of Kalyan Jewellers India, said the company ended the previous financial year on a strong note and has carried the momentum into the current year as well.

“We witnessed strong growth in our Akshaya Tritiya sales this year, and continue to see encouraging momentum in consumer demand, especially around wedding purchases during the current quarter,” he said.

Following Q4, Kalyan Jewellers India share price gained 4.3% to the day’s high of Rs 429 on the BSE.

The Indian stock market extended losses for the second consecutive session amid fresh escalations in the war between Iran and US, with the Sensex and Nifty 50 dropping more than 0.6% each while the smallcap index closed in the green and continued to outperform benchmarks.

Sensex declined around 516 points to close at 77,328, while the Nifty 50 index dropped 150 points to end the session at 24,176. This came as India VIX, which measures market volatility, gained around 2% to 16.92.

State Bank of India (SBI) shares tumbled 7% after the lender’s Q4 earnings failed to impress markets. HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank and UltraTech Cement dropped around 2% each to follow SBI as Sensex top losers. Titan shares meanwhile surged 5% after Q4 earnings. Asian Paints shares gained 3%, while Adani Ports, Infosys, HCLTech and TechM shares gained 1-2%.

Despite the overall downturn, Nifty Smallcap 100 rose 0.2% to close in the green. Nifty Midcap 100 index however fell 0.2%. Sectorally, Nifty PSU Bank declined more than 3% to lead losses, while Nifty IT gained 1%. Around 1,783 stocks declined on the NSE, while 1,501 advanced and 101 remained unchanged.

What’s bothering markets?

Notably, the market downturn comes amid the seesaw political developments in the Middle East. US President Donald Trump said that three American Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the strait. Trump later told reporters the ceasefire was still in effect and sought to play down the exchange.

Amid these flip-flops, oil prices gained. Brent crude rose over 1% to $101 per barrel. While Brent crude prices have significantly reduced after hitting as high as $120 per barrel last week, they still remain above the crucial $100 per barrel mark, spooking investors.
“The de-escalation and escalation drama in West Asia continues, with crude prices moving down and up in response. An important market trend amid this crisis is that despite geopolitical tensions, some markets are doing extremely well while others are performing poorly. South Korea and Taiwan are the star performers this year, with 71% and 40% returns YTD. These excellent returns have been generated by a few AI stocks. In contrast, India, impacted by the energy crisis, has delivered negative returns, with Nifty posting a -6.96% return YTD,” said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments.An important trend in India is the outperformance of the broader market, according to the market analyst. He highlighted that the Nifty Midcap index hit a record high yesterday despite high valuations. Nifty is being weighed down by sustained FPI selling, particularly in heavyweights in banking and IT, according to the analyst.

Rupee tumbles

The rupee declined 25 paise to 94.47 against the US dollar in early trade. This came after the Indian currency recorded sharp gains over the past two sessions, recovering from an all-time low of 95.4325 hit earlier in the week.

“The broader outlook remains sensitive to crude prices and final clarity on the US–Iran proposal,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst of Commodity and Currency at LKP Securities.

FII selling

Foreign investors remained net sellers of Indian equities for the third consecutive session on Thursday, although the quantum was significantly lower than in the previous two days. FIIs net sold Indian shares worth Rs 341 crore, according to provisional data from the NSE.

Global markets, meanwhile, also remained in the red, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined nearly 1% and South Korea’s Kospi closed with marginal gains on Friday, while Japan’s Nikkei dropped 0.35%.

European benchmark indices, including the UK’s FTSE and Germany’s DAX, fell up to 1%. Wall Street lost steam and closed in the red yesterday.

(With inputs from agencies)
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Tata Consumer Products on Friday reported that its consolidated net profit of Rs 419 crore in the fourth quarter. This was higher by 21% from Rs 345 crore posted in the previous year quarter. Revenue from operations increased 18% YoY to Rs 5,434 crore.

The Board has also recommended a dividend of Rs 10 per share for FY26. The dividend, if approved by shareholders, will be paid/dispatched (subject to deduction of tax at source) on or after June 15, 2026.

More to come…

Arm Holdings ARM -10.11%decrease; red down pointing triangle said it expects higher demand for its new line of computer chips, but left its revenue guidance from the chips unchanged as it works to boost supply.

The British semiconductor company said in March that it expected to sell $1 billion worth of the chips through early 2028. On Wednesday, it said its demand forecast had doubled to $2 billion, but said that it lacked supply to meet the new order requests.

Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

The office led Hodge House building has been acquired by SevenCitiesLdn

The prime office led Hodge House building in the centre of Cardiff is under new ownership following a multi-million-pound deal.

Financial services giant L&G put its investment in the listed building up for sale last November with a £34.1m asking price. The sales process, overseen by the Cardiff office of property advisory firm Knight Frank, attracted strong interest before a deal was concluded with London-based real estate, development and asset management start-up SevenCitiesLdn.

The value of the deal has not been disclosed, but is understood to have been close to the asking price. The Cardiff office of Savills acted for SevenCitiesLdn, which launched last year with backing from property development and investment group SevenCapital.

READ MORE: Welsh construction sector has reported a fall in workloadsREAD MORE: British Gas owner buys Welsh gas-fired power station for £370m

The acquisition is the first for SevenCitiesLdn which is looking to drive deal flow for added value commercial property assets.

Director Giles Hoare, who previously worked for property development firm Thackeray Group where as investment director he played a key role in its acquisition of the Howells building in the centre of Cardiff, said it is well capitalised with backing from SevenCapital Group to add further property assets, including potentially in Wales.

Mr Hoare said: “We believe we have acquired the best building in Cardiff and see it as a hold investment over the medium-term. Over the next 12-24 months there will be big drive in the regional office play and we are currently appraising opportunities in cities such as Bristol, Manchester and Birmingham.”

The Grade II listed Hodge House building was transformed under the ownership of L&G, which invested £20m refurbishing it to provide 110,000 sq ft of Grade A modern space. The building is fully let apart from a small office suite. The investment also includes the building’s retail and restaurant element on its St Mary Street side, which includes a Sainsbury’s store.

Hodge House generates nearly £3m in annual rent. Last year it set a new record rental level for Cardiff at £37.50 per sq ft for fitted out office space. The building’s tenants include alternative broadband infrastructure venture Ogi, taxi technology company Veezu, renewables firm Bute Energy and marketing and PR consultancy Freshwater.

L&G acquired the building in 2014 from Aberdeen Asset Management in a £18.8m deal. Hodge House was originally built in 1915 for the Co-operative Wholesale Society.

In a LinkedIn post director SevenCitiesLdn, Cameron Mitchell, said: “One year in at SevenCitiesLdn and this is the opening move (Hodge House acquisition) in our prime office strategy, targeting best-in-class office buildings across the UK’s key cities, with London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Edinburgh, and Glasgow firmly in our sights.

“We’re aiming to build a £300m-plus portfolio in the next two to three years. Clearly the market isn’t without its challenges, but we’re fully funded, conviction is high, the pipeline is active, and we are very much in deployment mode.”