Competitive pressures knock back Swedish Match’s 3Q profit

Swedish Match reported today that its sales during the third quarter to the end of September, at SEK3,230 million, were increased by 1 percent on those of the third quarter of 2012.

Operating profit from product areas, which excludes a share of the profit from the Scandinavian Tobacco Group, declined by 11 percent to SEK836 million.

Operating profit, which includes a share of the profit from the STG, declined by 10 percent to SEK924 million.

And basic earnings per share were down from SEK3.41 to SEK3.15.

CEO Lars Dahlgren said that key factors in the drop in operating profit had included a sharp fall in the operating profit for other tobacco products, reflecting the adverse competitive pricing developments in the U.S. cigar market, a restructuring charge relating to Scandinavian snus operations, as well as adverse “mix effects” within SM’s snus and snuff product area.