Record Quarter for Swedish Match

Swedish Match reported record sales and operating profit from product segments in the third quarter of 2020.

Sales and operating profit increased for the Smokefree and Cigars segments in both the U.S. and Scandinavia, elevated by Covid-19 related effects on consumer demand and channel shifts.

In local currencies, sales increased by 23 percent for the third quarter. Reported sales increased by 15 percent to SEK4.4 billion ($504 million).

In local currencies, operating profit from product segments increased by 37 percent for the third quarter. Reported operating profit from product segments increased by 28 percent to SEK2.05 billion

Operating profit amounted to SEK2.02 billion for the third quarter.

Profit after tax, which includes a charge of SEK286 million following adverse ruling in a tax case, amounted to SEK1.19 billion for the third quarter.

“Swedish Match delivered an outstanding performance during the third quarter,” said CEO Lars Dahlgren, CEO of Swedish Match in the company’s quarterly report. “While we estimate that Covid-19 related effects had a notably positive net impact on group earnings, the underlying financial development across our product segments was strong.

“Impressive performance for Zyn in the U.S. continued to be the key contributor to profit growth. For this quarter we also noted a significant upturn in operating profit for our U.S. cigar business, as well as for our Scandinavian smokefree business—even when excluding Covid-19 related positive mix effects from increased domestic volumes in Norway that substituted deliveries to border trade and travel retail outlets.”