Financial Highlights – 2023 Full Year
*Net income from continuing operations of $253 million ($5.93 per diluted share)
*Cash provided by operating activities from continuing operations of $504 million
*Free cash flow3 of $294 million
*Paid regular and special dividends totaling $57 million
*Repurchased 1,574,133 shares of our common stock for approximately $70 million, resulting in 41.2 million shares outstanding as of Dec. 31
*Ended the year with net debt of $730 million ($950 million of gross debt and $220 million cash on hand)
Financial Highlights – Fourth Quarter vs. Third Quarter
*Net sales of $964 million vs. $897 million (7.5% increase)
*Net income from continuing operations of $49 million ($1.16 per diluted share) vs. $58 million ($1.37 per diluted share)
*Cash provided by operating activities from continuing operations of $167 million vs. $197 million
*Free cash flow3 of $104 million vs. $155 million
Management Summary from Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jean-Michel Ribiéras
In 2023, we earned $607 million in adjusted EBITDA, generated $294 million of free cash flow and returned $127 million in cash to shareowners. We are proud of the way our teams adapted when challenged by uncoated freesheet market conditions that were significantly less favorable than expected. We continued to deliver on our promises to customers and shareowners.
We remain focused on allocating capital to drive long-term shareowner value. Last year, we invested $210 million to strengthen our low-cost assets and acquired a 500,000-ton uncoated freesheet mill in Nymolla, Sweden, for $167 million. In 2023, this mill generated strong cash flow, benefiting from the $40 million pulp mill modernization project completed just before the acquisition. We are also on track to deliver $20 million annual run rate synergies by the end of 2024. The Nymolla mill is strengthening our performance while enabling us to serve customers across Europe and around the world more effectively.
By the end of 2023, we exhausted our initial $150 million share repurchase program authorization and have approximately $150 million remaining on our September 2023 authorization. We will continue to return substantial amounts of cash to shareowners and look for opportunities to repurchase shares at attractive prices. Our board of directors declared a first quarter dividend of $0.30 per share, which we paid Jan. 25th.
details at: https://investors.sylvamo.com/news/news-details/2024/Sylvamo-Generates-Strong-Operating-Cash-Flow-Returns-127-Million-in-Cash-to-Shareowners-in-2023/default.aspx