"Our fourth quarter consolidated performance met sequential forecasts. Packaging results were within expectations, with benefits from lower production costs, favourable raw material pricing and continued solid production levels at Bear Island..." – Hugues Simon, President and CEO of Cascades.
Feb. 26, 2026 - Cascades Inc. (TSX: CAS) reports its unaudited financial results for the three-month period and fiscal year ended December 31, 2025.
Hugues Simon, President and CEO, commented: "Our fourth quarter consolidated performance met sequential forecasts. Packaging results were within expectations, with benefits from lower production costs, favourable raw material pricing and continued solid production levels at Bear Island mitigating the expected lower seasonal sales volumes. Results of our tissue business fell short of targeted levels. Simply put, our tissue operations did not meet efficiency and logistics execution objectives in the quarter. These effects were compounded by an unplanned power outage at one of our facilities that further impacted production levels, supply chain efficiency and added incremental operating costs of approximately $6 million in the period. The countermeasures we have already put in place to address these issues are generating positive traction. Overall, we successfully decreased net debt by $127 million sequentially, which results in leverage decreasing to 3.3x from 3.6x at the end of the third quarter." 1 Some information represents non-IFRS Accounting Standards Financial measures, other financial measures or non-IFRS Accounting Standards ratios which are not standardized under IFRS Accounting Standards and therefore might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other corporations. Please refer to the "Supplemental Information on Non-IFRS Accounting Standards Measures and Other Financial Measures" section for a complete reconciliation.
Discussing near-term outlook, Mr. Simon commented, "We expect first quarter performance to decline sequentially, but to remain higher year over year for the sixth consecutive quarter. In packaging, the forecasted sequential decline is attributable to usual seasonality in demand levels and higher transportation and energy costs due to weather-related impacts in the US in early 2026. We are similarly expecting softer results in tissue sequentially. In addition to usual seasonality and costs related to severe weather, results in this segment will be impacted by residual production and logistics costs following the power outage at one of our facilities. Our leverage ratio is expected to continue to improve in the coming quarters.
Looking further ahead, we are confident in our ability to achieve our strategic objectives, and we expect our 2026 performance to surpass 2025, despite ongoing macro economic uncertainty. We made good progress across many of our initiatives over the past year. In addition to achieving our objective of generating $120 million of proceeds from asset sales ahead of schedule, we have generated approximately $30 million of profitability improvements. We are confident that the fundamentals for our Company are strong, and are steadfast in our commitment to continue to improve the financial profile, level of operational and commercial excellence and growth momentum of our Company."
Founded in 1964, Cascades offers sustainable, innovative and value-added packaging, hygiene and recovery solutions. The company employs approximately 9,200 women and men across a network of 64 operating facilities, including 17 Recovery and Recycling facilities which are part of Corporate Activities and joint ventures managed by the Corporation, in North America.
SOURCE: Cascades Inc.