CROWN HOLDINGS, INC. REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER AND FULL YEAR 2025 RESULTS
Rhea-AI Summary
Crown Holdings (NYSE: CCK) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results, with 2025 adjusted diluted EPS $7.79 (up 22%) and record adjusted free cash flow $1,146 million. Full-year net sales were $12,365 million and reported diluted EPS was $6.38. The company returned $625 million to shareholders and reduced net leverage to 2.5x. 2026 guidance calls for adjusted diluted EPS of $7.90–$8.30 and adjusted free cash flow of ~$900 million, with capital spending estimated at $550 million.
Positive
- Adjusted diluted EPS +22% to $7.79 in 2025
- Record adjusted free cash flow of $1,146 million in 2025
- Returned $625 million to shareholders in 2025
- Net leverage reduced to 2.5x, lowest in >15 years
Negative
- 2026 adjusted free cash flow guidance ~$900M, ~21% below 2025 record
- Lower volumes in Asia Pacific and Transit Packaging in 2025
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
CCK gained 3.5%, while key peers like BALL (+3.88%) and AMCR (+2.27%) also rose, but others such as SW fell (-1.49%). Mixed peer moves and a stock-specific earnings release point to a company-driven move rather than a unified sector rotation.
Previous Earnings Reports
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 20 | Q3 2025 earnings | Positive | +0.6% | Q3 2025 EPS inflection, higher guidance, leverage target of 2.5x achieved. |
| Jul 21 | Q2 2025 earnings | Positive | +0.3% | Strong Q2 EPS growth, higher full-year guidance and improved segment income. |
| Apr 28 | Q1 2025 earnings | Positive | +8.0% | Sharp EPS increase, stronger segment income, and raised 2025 outlook. |
| Feb 05 | FY 2024 earnings | Positive | +2.6% | Record free cash flow, higher EPS and guidance, leverage reduction. |
| Oct 17 | Q3 2024 earnings | Positive | +4.2% | Higher segment income, stronger shipments and upgraded EPS guidance. |
Earnings releases have consistently driven positive reactions, with all recent earnings events followed by gains and several accompanied by raised guidance or record cash flow.
Over the past year, Crown’s earnings reports have highlighted steadily improving fundamentals. Q1–Q3 2025 results showed rising adjusted EPS, stronger segment income, and multiple upward revisions to full-year guidance. Record adjusted free cash flow and a declining net leverage ratio were already key themes in the 2024 year-end release. Today’s Q4 and full-year 2025 report extends that trajectory with record adjusted EPS, record free cash flow, and another year of guidance that anticipates further EPS growth in 2026.
Historical Comparison
In the last five earnings releases, CCK moved an average of 3.13%. Today’s 3.5% gain on strong FY 2025 results and higher 2026 guidance is broadly in line with that pattern.
Earnings updates have steadily raised adjusted EPS guidance from $6.70–$7.10 early in 2025 to delivered $7.79 and now a $7.90–$8.30 outlook for 2026, alongside record and rising adjusted free cash flow targets.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement details a strong finish to 2025, with adjusted diluted EPS up 22% to $7.79, record adjusted free cash flow of about $1.15B, and net leverage reduced to 2.5x. Management guides to $7.90–$8.30 adjusted EPS and roughly $900M adjusted free cash flow in 2026, while planning about $550M of growth capex. Relative to prior earnings releases, the pattern of rising EPS, strong cash generation, and ongoing shareholder returns remains a central theme to monitor.
Key Terms
segment income financial
adjusted free cash flow financial
net leverage ratio financial
adjusted EBITDA financial
non-GAAP measures financial
adjusted effective tax rate financial
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Highlights
Fourth Quarter
- Diluted earnings per share of
$1.31 - Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased
9% to .74$1
Full Year
- Diluted earnings per share of
$6.38 - Record adjusted diluted earnings per share of
, an increase of$7.79 22% - Operating cash flow of
$1,530 million - Record adjusted free cash flow of
, more than$1,146 million per share$10.00 - Returned
to shareholders, in excess of$625 million per share$5.50 - Net leverage ratio reduced to 2.5x from 2.7x at end of 2024
2026 Outlook
- Expect full year 2026 adjusted diluted earnings per share in the range of
-$7.90 $8.30 - Expect full year 2026 adjusted free cash flow of approximately
$900 million
Timothy J. Donahue, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated "The Company continued its strong momentum during the fourth quarter to complete an excellent year. In 2025, the Company achieved record adjusted EBITDA of approximately
"The Company also generated record free cash flow of
"Our pursuit of commercial and operational excellence has delivered strong financial results, a sound balance sheet, and ultimately, higher shareholder value. As we look ahead to 2026, the Company will continue to use its robust free cash flow to make strategic investments in growth and return value to shareholders through dividends and repurchases of its common stock."
Fourth Quarter Results
Net sales in the fourth quarter were
Income from operations was
Net income attributable to Crown Holdings in the fourth quarter was
Full Year Results
Net sales for 2025 were
Income from operations was
Net income attributable to Crown Holdings in 2025 was
Outlook
"We had an excellent year in 2025 with adjusted EPS up
The Company expects first quarter adjusted diluted earnings per share to be in the range of
Non-GAAP Measures
Segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net debt, adjusted net leverage ratio, adjusted net income, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted diluted earnings per share, net interest expense, EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA are not defined terms under
The Company views segment income as the principal measure of the performance of its operations and adjusted free cash flow and adjusted net leverage ratio as the principal measures of its liquidity. The Company considers all of these measures in the allocation of resources. Adjusted free cash flow has certain limitations, however, including that it does not represent the residual cash flow available for discretionary expenditures since other non-discretionary expenditures, such as mandatory debt service requirements, are not deducted from the measure. The amount of mandatory versus discretionary expenditures can vary significantly between periods. The Company believes that adjusted free cash flow and adjusted net leverage ratio provide meaningful measures of liquidity and a useful basis for assessing the Company's ability to fund its activities, including the financing of acquisitions, debt repayments, share repurchases or dividends. The Company believes that adjusted net income, segment income, the adjusted effective tax rate and adjusted diluted earnings per share are useful in evaluating the Company's operations as these measures are adjusted for items that affect comparability between periods. Segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net debt, adjusted net leverage ratio, adjusted net income, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted diluted earnings per share, net interest expense, EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA are derived from the Company's Consolidated Statements of Operations, Cash Flows and Consolidated Balance Sheets, as applicable, and reconciliations to segment income, adjusted free cash flow, net debt, adjusted net leverage ratio, adjusted net income, the adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted diluted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA can be found within this release. Reconciliations of estimated adjusted diluted earnings per share, adjusted free cash flow, the adjusted effective tax rate and adjusted net leverage ratio for the first quarter and full year of 2026 to estimated diluted earnings per share, operating cash flow, the effective tax rate and income from operations on a GAAP basis are not provided in this release due to the unavailability of estimates of the following, the timing and magnitude of which the Company is unable to reliably forecast without unreasonable efforts, which are excluded from estimated adjusted diluted earnings per share, the adjusted effective tax rate and adjusted net leverage ratio and could have a significant impact on earnings per share, the effective tax rate and income from operations on a GAAP basis: gains or losses on the sale of businesses or other assets, restructuring and other costs, asset impairment charges, asbestos-related charges, losses from early extinguishment of debt, pension settlement and curtailment charges, the tax and noncontrolling interest impact of the items above, and the impact of tax law changes or other tax matters.
Conference Call
The Company will hold a conference call tomorrow, February 5, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. (EST) to discuss this news release. Forward-looking and other material information may be discussed on the conference call. The dial-in numbers for the conference call are 630-395-0194 or toll-free 888-324-8108 and the access password is "packaging." A live webcast of the call will be made available to the public on the internet at the Company's website, www.crowncork.com. A replay of the conference call will be available for a one-week period ending at midnight on February 12, 2026. The telephone numbers for the replay are 203-369-0896 or toll free 866-427-6407.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Except for historical information, all other information in this press release consists of forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors, including expected levels of capital expenditures, free cash flow and earnings; the Company's ability to continue to operate its plants, distribute its products and maintain its supply chain; the Company's ability to complete projects in
Crown Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is a leading global supplier of rigid packaging products to consumer marketing companies, as well as transit and protective packaging products, equipment and services to a broad range of end markets. World headquarters are located in
For more information, contact:
Kevin C. Clothier, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, (215) 698-5281
Thomas T. Fischer, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Affairs, (215) 552-3720
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations, Balance Sheets, Statements of Cash Flows, Segment Information and Supplemental Data follow.
Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited) (in millions, except share and per share data) | |||||||
Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | ||||||
2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||
Net sales | $ 3,127 | $ 2,903 | $ 11,801 | ||||
Cost of products sold | 2,465 | 2,253 | 9,641 | 9,262 | |||
Depreciation and amortization | 116 | 104 | 456 | 448 | |||
Selling and administrative expense | 164 | 147 | 632 | 597 | |||
Restructuring and other | 8 | 48 | 83 | 75 | |||
Income from operations (1) | 374 | 351 | 1,553 | 1,419 | |||
Loss on debt extinguishment | 14 | 1 | 15 | 1 | |||
Other pension and postretirement | 4 | (1) | 13 | 546 | |||
Gain on sale of equity method investment | (275) | (275) | |||||
Foreign exchange | 3 | 19 | 22 | 34 | |||
Earnings before interest and taxes | 353 | 607 | 1,503 | 1,113 | |||
Interest expense | 95 | 108 | 398 | 452 | |||
Interest income | (15) | (22) | (55) | (82) | |||
Income from operations before income taxes | 273 | 521 | 1,160 | 743 | |||
Provision for income taxes | 73 | 128 | 281 | 183 | |||
Equity earnings | 1 | (1) | 4 | ||||
Net income | 201 | 392 | 883 | 560 | |||
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests | 51 | 34 | 145 | 136 | |||
Net income attributable to Crown Holdings | $ 150 | $ 358 | $ 738 | $ 424 | |||
Earnings per share attributable to Crown Holdings common shareholders: | |||||||
Basic | $ 1.32 | $ 3.03 | $ 6.41 | $ 3.56 | |||
Diluted | $ 1.31 | $ 3.02 | $ 6.38 | $ 3.55 | |||
Weighted average common shares outstanding: | |||||||
Basic | 113,674,578 | 118,295,008 | 115,221,836 | 119,195,009 | |||
Diluted | 114,230,598 | 118,599,513 | 115,742,839 | 119,426,593 | |||
Actual common shares outstanding | 113,421,634 | 118,503,631 | 113,421,634 | 118,503,631 | |||
(1) Reconciliation from income from operations to segment income follows. | |||||||
Consolidated Supplemental Financial Data (Unaudited)
(in millions)
Reconciliation from Income from Operations to Segment Income
The Company views segment income, as defined below, as a principal measure of performance of its operations and for the allocation of resources. Segment income is defined by the Company as income from operations adjusted to exclude intangibles amortization charges and provisions for restructuring and other.
Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||
2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||
Income from operations | $ | 374 | $ | 351 | $ | 1,553 | $ | 1,419 | |||||
Intangibles amortization | 38 | 29 | 148 | 151 | |||||||||
Restructuring and other | 8 | 48 | 83 | 75 | |||||||||
Segment income | $ | 420 | $ | 428 | $ | 1,784 | $ | 1,645 | |||||
Segment Information | |||||||||||||
Net Sales | Three Months Ended | Year Ended | |||||||||||
2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||
Americas Beverage | $ | 1,473 | $ | 1,325 | $ | 5,615 | $ | 5,240 | |||||
European Beverage | 520 | 456 | 2,325 | 2,071 | |||||||||
302 | 308 | 1,096 | 1,161 | ||||||||||
Transit Packaging | 501 | 511 | 2,026 | 2,107 | |||||||||
Other (1) | 331 | 303 | 1,303 | 1,222 | |||||||||
Total net sales | $ | 3,127 | $ | 2,903 | $ | 12,365 | $ | 11,801 | |||||
Segment Income | |||||||||||||
Americas Beverage | $ | 271 | $ | 275 | $ | 1,030 | $ | 987 | |||||
European Beverage | 61 | 51 | 334 | 276 | |||||||||
42 | 48 | 183 | 195 | ||||||||||
Transit Packaging | 56 | 59 | 258 | 270 | |||||||||
Other (1) | 33 | 33 | 148 | 82 | |||||||||
Corporate and other unallocated items | (43) | (38) | (169) | (165) | |||||||||
Total segment income | $ | 420 | $ | 428 | $ | 1,784 | $ | 1,645 | |||||
(1) | Includes the Company's food can, aerosol can and closures businesses in |
Consolidated Supplemental Data (Unaudited)
(in millions, except per share data)
Reconciliation from Net Income and Diluted Earnings Per Share to Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share
The following table reconciles reported net income and diluted earnings per share attributable to the Company to adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share, as used elsewhere in this release.
Three Months Ended December 31, | Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||||
2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||
Net income/diluted earnings per share attributable to Crown Holdings, as reported |
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Intangibles amortization (1) | 38 | 0.33 | 29 | 0.24 | 148 | 1.28 | 151 | 1.27 | |||||||||
Restructuring and other (2) | 8 | 0.07 | 48 | 0.41 | 83 | 0.71 | 75 | 0.62 | |||||||||
Loss on debt extinguishment | 14 | 0.12 | 1 | 0.01 | 15 | 0.13 | 1 | 0.01 | |||||||||
Other pension and postretirement (3) | (6) | (0.05) | (5) | (0.04) | 513 | 4.30 | |||||||||||
Gain on sale of equity method investment (4) | (275) | (2.32) | (275) | (2.30) | |||||||||||||
Income taxes (5) | (10) | (0.08) | 40 | 0.34 | (68) | (0.59) | (131) | (1.10) | |||||||||
Equity earnings (6) | 2 | 0.02 | 16 | 0.13 | |||||||||||||
Noncontrolling interests (7) | (1) | (0.01) | (9) | (0.08) | (9) | (0.08) | (9) | (0.07) | |||||||||
Adjusted net income/diluted earnings per share | |||||||||||||||||
Effective tax rate as reported | 26.7 % | 24.6 % | 24.2 % | 24.6 % | |||||||||||||
Adjusted effective tax rate | 24.9 % | 27.7 % | 24.9 % | 26.0 % | |||||||||||||
Adjusted net income, adjusted diluted earnings per share and the adjusted effective tax rate are non-GAAP measures and are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for net income, diluted earnings per share and effective tax rates determined in accordance with
(1) | In the fourth quarter and full year of 2025, the Company recorded charges of |
(2) | In the fourth quarter and full year of 2025, the Company recorded net restructuring and other charges of |
(3) | For the full year of 2025, the Company recorded a pension settlement gain of |
(4) | In the fourth quarter of 2024, the Company recorded a gain of |
(5) | The Company recorded income tax benefits of |
(6) | In the fourth quarter and full year of 2024, the Company recorded its proportional share of intangible amortization and restructuring charges, net of tax, recorded by its European tinplate equity method investment, in the line Equity earnings. |
(7) | In the fourth quarter and full year of 2025 and 2024, the Company recorded noncontrolling interest related to the items described above. |
Consolidated Balance Sheets (Condensed & Unaudited) (in millions) | ||||||||
December 31, | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||
Assets | ||||||||
Current assets | ||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 764 | $ | 918 | ||||
Receivables, net | 1,768 | 1,656 | ||||||
Inventories | 1,577 | 1,440 | ||||||
Prepaid expenses and other current assets | 279 | 197 | ||||||
Total current assets | 4,388 | 4,211 | ||||||
Goodwill and intangible assets, net | 4,114 | 3,998 | ||||||
Property, plant and equipment, net | 5,187 | 4,927 | ||||||
Other non-current assets | 583 | 712 | ||||||
Total assets | $ | 13,848 | ||||||
Liabilities and equity | ||||||||
Current liabilities | ||||||||
Short-term debt | $ | 83 | $ | 66 | ||||
Current maturities of long-term debt | 480 | 80 | ||||||
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | 3,703 | 3,319 | ||||||
Total current liabilities | 4,266 | 3,465 | ||||||
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities | 5,401 | 6,058 | ||||||
Other non-current liabilities | 1,125 | 1,097 | ||||||
Noncontrolling interests | 481 | 472 | ||||||
Crown Holdings shareholders' equity | 2,999 | 2,756 | ||||||
Total equity | 3,480 | 3,228 | ||||||
Total liabilities and equity | $ | 14,272 | $ | 13,848 | ||||
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Condensed & Unaudited) (in millions) | |||||||||
Year ended December 31, | 2025 | 2024 | |||||||
Cash flows from operating activities | |||||||||
Net income | $ | 883 | $ | 560 | |||||
Depreciation and amortization | 456 | 448 | |||||||
Restructuring and other | 83 | 75 | |||||||
Pension and postretirement expense | 33 | 568 | |||||||
Pension contributions | 13 | (122) | |||||||
Gain on sale of equity method investment | (275) | ||||||||
Stock-based compensation | 48 | 42 | |||||||
Loss on debt extinguishment | 15 | 1 | |||||||
Working capital changes and other | (1) | (105) | |||||||
Net cash provided by operating activities | 1,530 | 1,192 | |||||||
Cash flows from investing activities | |||||||||
Capital expenditures | (413) | (403) | |||||||
Equity method investment distribution | 338 | ||||||||
Asset sales | 36 | 28 | |||||||
Net investment hedges | 29 | 25 | |||||||
Other | 28 | ||||||||
Net cash used for investing activities | (320) | (12) | |||||||
Cash flows from financing activities | |||||||||
Net change in debt | (593) | (1,056) | |||||||
Bond issuance costs | (19) | (10) | |||||||
Dividends paid to shareholders | (120) | (119) | |||||||
Common stock repurchased | (505) | (217) | |||||||
Dividends paid to noncontrolling interests | (140) | (119) | |||||||
Other, net | 16 | (5) | |||||||
Net cash used for financing activities | (1,361) | (1,526) | |||||||
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents | 14 | (38) | |||||||
Net change in cash and cash equivalents | (137) | (384) | |||||||
Cash and cash equivalents at January 1 | 1,016 | 1,400 | |||||||
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at December 31 (1) | $ | 879 | $ | 1,016 | |||||
(1) Cash and cash equivalents include |
Adjusted free cash flow is defined by the Company as net cash from operating activities less capital expenditures and certain other items. A reconciliation of net cash from operating activities to adjusted free cash flow for the three months and year ended December 31, 2025 and 2024 follows.
Three Months Ended December 31, |
Year Ended December 31, | ||||||||||||||
2025 | 2024 | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||
Net cash provided by operating activities | $ 487 | $ 295 | $ 1,530 | $ 1,192 | |||||||||||
Interest included in investing activities (2) | 4 | 29 | 25 | ||||||||||||
Capital expenditures | (232) | (149) | (413) | (403) | |||||||||||
Adjusted free cash flow | $ 259 | $ 146 | $ 1,146 | $ 814 | |||||||||||
(2) Interest benefit of cross currency swaps included in investing activities. |
Consolidated Supplemental Data (Unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
Impact of Foreign Currency Translation – Favorable/(Unfavorable) (1) | ||||||||||||||||
Three Months Ended December 31, 2025 | Year Ended December 31, 2025 | |||||||||||||||
Net Sales | Segment |
Net Sales | Segment | |||||||||||||
Americas Beverage | $ | 6 | $ | (1) | $ | (16) | $ | |||||||||
European Beverage | 31 | 4 | 63 | 8 | ||||||||||||
4 | 1 | 19 | 3 | |||||||||||||
Transit Packaging | 16 | 3 | 17 | 3 | ||||||||||||
Other | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
$ | 58 | $ | 7 | $ | 84 | $ | 14 | |||||||||
(1) | The impact of foreign currency translation represents the difference between actual current year |
Reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Net Leverage Ratio | |||||||
2025 | 2024 | ||||||
Income from operations | $ | 1,553 | $ | 1,419 | |||
Add: | |||||||
Intangibles amortization | 148 | 151 | |||||
Restructuring and other | 83 | 75 | |||||
Segment income | 1,784 | 1,645 | |||||
Depreciation | 308 | 297 | |||||
Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 2,092 | $ | 1,942 | |||
Total debt | $ | 5,964 | $ | 6,204 | |||
Less cash | 764 | 918 | |||||
Net debt | $ | 5,200 | $ | 5,286 | |||
Adjusted net leverage ratio | 2.5x | 2.7x | |||||
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SOURCE Crown Holdings, Inc.