Smurfit Kappa boss wins RISI European CEO of the Year

RISI, an information provider for the global forest products industry, has named Smurfit Kappa chief executive officer Gary McGann as its 2015 European CEO of the Year.

RISI has named Smurfit Kappa chief executive officer Gary McGann as its 2015 European CEO of the Year

RISI’s European CEO of the Year is nominated by a group of investment analysts and portfolio managers covering the European and global pulp and paper industry.

Smurfit Kappa is one of the leading providers of paper-based packaging in the world, with around 41,000 employees in approximately 350 production sites across 32 countries in Europe and the Americas.

In the first nine months of 2014, Smurfit Kappa delivered year-on-year growth in EBITDA of six percent and pre-exceptional EPS growth of 55 percent, reflecting the continuing benefits of the group’s integrated business model, the strength of its international portfolio of businesses, the consistent delivery on cost reduction initiatives and a fundamentally improved capital structure, Smurfit Kappa said.

Further, the US acquisition of Bates Container for 158 million USD in October 2014 built on the previous acquisition of what is now Smurfit Kappa Orange County, and recent acquisitions in Colombia and Dominican Republic have further enhanced the group’s footprint in the Americas region.

In December 2014, Smurfit Kappa’s credit rating was upgraded to BB+ / Ba1 by both Moody’s Investors Service and by Fitch Ratings, which followed an upgrade by Standard & Poor’s in February 2014.

Last year also saw the launch of Smurfit Kappa’s new, innovation-focused ‘Open the future’ global brand strategy.

In choosing McGann, one analyst said: ‘Without hesitation I would go for Gary McGann again. He has shown sterling leadership and Smurfit Kappa has been performing exceptionally well, added to which he has also made sure there are foundations in place for future growth.

‘McGann is also a very amiable personality in the industry and absolutely merits this award.’

Another said: ‘Gary McGann gets my vote; Smurfit Kappa has sourced a great deal in the US recently which has integrated existing business providing nice synergies. The company under his leadership has also grown margins impressively in Europe, outstripping peers.

‘In addition, the capex projects recently announced will help drive further earnings growth regardless of the slack micro conditions and it is encouraging to see the company taking the lead by rationalizing some capacity as well.’

RISI will present Gerry McGann with his award at its European conference which will take place in Amsterdam, Netherlands across March 9-11.