Quad Reports 7% Sales Decline for Q2 2023, But Reaffirms Full-Year Financial Guidance

Quad/Graphics, Inc. (NYSE: QUAD) (“Quad” or the “Company”), reported results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023.

Recent Highlights

• Reported Net Sales of $703 million and Net Loss of $6 million in the second quarter of 2023, or $0.12 diluted loss per share.
• Achieved Adjusted EBITDA of $50 million in the second quarter of 2023 compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $56 million in the second quarter of 2022, and Adjusted EBITDA of $111 million in the first half of 2023 compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $105 million in the first half of 2022.
• Delivered Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share of $0.02 in the second quarter of 2023, compared to $0.13 in the second quarter of 2022, and in the first half of the year, delivered $0.17 Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share in both 2023 and 2022.
• Increased Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities by $24 million for the six months ended June 30, 2023, compared to the same period in 2022.
• Increased Free Cash Flow by $12 million for the six months ended June 30, 2023, compared to the same period in 2022, including $34 million of Free Cash Flow generation in the second quarter of 2023.
• Reduced Net Debt by $80 million over last 12 months to end the second quarter with a Debt Leverage Ratio of 2.34x, which is within the company’s long-term targeted leverage range of 2.0x – 2.5x.
• Returned value to shareholders by repurchasing approximately 8% of the company’s total outstanding common stock beginning in the second quarter of 2022.
• Reaffirms full-year 2023 financial guidance.

Joel Quadracci, Chairman, President and CEO of Quad, said: “Our results for the second quarter of 2023 were in line with our expectations as we continue to advance as a marketing experience, or MX, company that brings together all the resources companies need for frictionless marketing execution.  Through our uniquely integrated marketing platform, we help companies reduce the complexity they experience from working with multiple agency partners and vendors; increase their marketing process efficiency; and maximize the effectiveness of their marketing efforts.

“Our ability to seamlessly connect every facet of the marketing journey is the centerpiece of our new brand campaign, Built on Quad.  We launched the campaign in June in conjunction with the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity – the premier gathering of the global advertising and creative communications industry.  Our uniqueness as an MX company resonates with brands and marketers.  Because we provide a better marketing experience for our clients, they can focus on delivering the best customer experience.

“While some marketers have reduced print volumes due to economic uncertainty and postage rate increases, we continue to help them through our holistic marketing solutions.  As these companies contemplate where and how to invest their marketing dollars, we remain ready to meet their needs with an integrated marketing platform that easily supports their shifts in marketing spend.  Printing continues to be a core part of our business, and a clear and competitive differentiator from traditional agencies.  Our reputation for quality, on-time production, ongoing investments in automation and equipment, and a well-trained, skilled workforce enables us to continue to gain segment share across all categories of print.

“As always, we are committed to delivering superior service to our clients while enhancing our financial strength and creating shareholder value, including opportunistic share repurchases.  We will continue to prioritize growth while improving productivity and reducing debt in 2023, consistent with our commitment to create a better, more purposeful and sustainable way forward for all our stakeholders.”

Summary Results

Click to enlarge. Source: Q2 2023 Quad Earnings Call

Results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, include:

• Net Sales — Net Sales were $703 million in the second quarter of 2023, a decrease of 7% compared to the same period in 2022 primarily due to lower paper and print sales, as well as the 2022 divestiture of the Company’s Argentina print operations.
• Net Loss — Net Loss was $6 million in the second quarter of 2023 compared to Net Earnings of $5 million in the second quarter of 2022.  The decrease is primarily due to lower sales, higher restructuring and impairment charges from recent plant closures, increased interest expense from rising interest rates, and lower pension income, partially offset by benefits from improved manufacturing productivity and savings from cost reduction initiatives.
• Adjusted EBITDA — Adjusted EBITDA was $50 million in the second quarter of 2023 as compared to $56 million in the same period in 2022.  The decrease was due to lower sales, partially offset by benefits from improved manufacturing productivity and savings from cost reduction initiatives.
• Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share — Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share was $0.02 in the second quarter of 2023, as compared to $0.13 in the second quarter of 2022, primarily due to lower adjusted net earnings and partially offset by the beneficial impact from the Company repurchasing Class A shares totaling approximately 8% of its outstanding Class A and B common stock beginning in the second quarter of 2022, at a weighted average price of $3.32 per share for a total purchase price of $15 million.

Results for the six months ended June 30, 2023, include:

• Net Sales — Net Sales were $1.5 billion in the six months ended June 30, 2023, a decrease of 2% from the same period in 2022 primarily due to lower paper sales and the divestiture of the Company’s Argentina print operations.
• Net Loss — Net Loss was $31 million in the six months ended June 30, 2023, compared to Net Earnings of $4 million in the six months ended June 30, 2022.  The decrease is primarily due to lower sales, higher restructuring and impairment charges from recent plant closures, increased interest expense from rising interest rates, and lower pension income, partially offset by benefits from improved manufacturing productivity and savings from cost reduction initiatives.
• Adjusted EBITDA — Adjusted EBITDA was $111 million in the six months ended June 30, 2023, an increase of $6 million compared to the same period in 2022.  This increase was primarily due to benefits from improved manufacturing productivity and savings from cost reduction initiatives, partially offset by lower sales.
• Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share — Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share was $0.17 in the six months ended June 30, 2023, consistent with the six months ended June 30, 2022.
• Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities and Free Cash Flow — Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities was $0.3 million in the six months ended June 30, 2023, as compared to Net Cash Used in Operating Activities of $24 million in the same period in 2022.  Free Cash Flow improved $12 million from last year to negative $45 million in the first six months ended June 30, 2023, and included $34 million of Free Cash Flow generation in the second quarter of 2023.  The increase in Free Cash Flow was primarily due to lower inventory as supply chain challenges improved and strong receivables collections.  The increase in Free Cash Flow was despite $12 million of increased capital expenditures as the Company continues to progress on its automation initiatives.  As a reminder, the Company historically generates the majority of its Free Cash Flow in the fourth quarter of the year.
• Net Debt — Net Debt increased by $59 million to $604 million at June 30, 2023, as compared to $545 million at December 31, 2022, primarily due to the negative $45 million of Free Cash Flow in the six months ended June 30, 2023. Compared to March 31, 2023, the Company lowered the Debt Leverage Ratio by 5 basis points to 2.34x, which is within its long-term targeted leverage range of 2.0x - 2.5x.

Click to enlarge. Source: Q2 2023 Quad Earnings Call

2023 Guidance

The Company’s full-year 2023 financial guidance remains unchanged and includes:

Click to enlarge.

Tony Staniak, CFO of Quad, said: “We are pleased to have generated $34 million of Free Cash Flow in the second quarter, which we used to strengthen our balance sheet and repurchase an additional $5 million of Quad shares.  This brings our Class A share repurchases to 8% of Quad’s total outstanding common stock over the past 13 months.  Additionally, our focus on productivity improvements, cost reduction initiatives, lower inventory balances and receivables collections helped drive strong cash generation that was used to reduce debt by $80 million over the last year.  We will continue enhancing our balance sheet and remain confident in our 2023 financial guidance, including decreasing our debt leverage to approximately 2.0x by the end of 2023, representing the low end of our long-term targeted debt leverage range of 2.0x-2.5x.”

Source: Quad

The preceding press release was provided by a company unaffiliated with Packaging Impressions. The views expressed within do not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of the staff of Packaging Impressions.