Ball buys European aluminum-packaging firm, boosts earnings per share

WESTMINSTER — Ball Corp. (NYSE: BALL) acquired European aluminum-packaging firm Alucan Entec SA in late October, just prior to posting its third-quarter financial results, which featured a year-over-year bump in earnings per share. 

The $88 million acquisition “complements Ball’s existing global extruded aluminum aerosol and bottle business with the addition of two manufacturing facilities near Lummen, Belgium, and Llinars del Vallés, Spain, along with associated contracts and other related assets,” the company said in its quarterly report.

Ball’s third-quarter 2024 net earnings attributable to the corporation were $197 million on sales of $3.08 billion, compared with $203 million net earnings attributable to the corporation on sales of $3.11 billion in the same period last year. 

Earnings per diluted share were 91 cents in the most recent quarter, up from 83 cents in the third quarter of 2023.

“We delivered strong third quarter results and have returned $1.25 billion to shareholders in the first nine months of 2024,” Ball CEO Daniel Fisher said in a prepared statement. “Leveraging our strong financial position and leaner operating model, the company remains uniquely positioned to enable our purpose of advancing the greater use of sustainable aluminum packaging, despite the current end consumer environment in certain geographies. We continue to complement our purpose by driving innovation and sustainability on a global scale, unlocking additional manufacturing efficiencies and enabling consistent delivery of high-quality, long-term shareholder value creation.”

Ball’s stock price was $59.12 as of 12:15 p.m. Friday, roughly flat on the day.

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