Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. reported a net loss of $5 million or a net loss of $0.07 per diluted share, compared to net income of $29 million or $0.45 per diluted share for the same prior year quarter. The net loss from continuing operations for the quarter ended September 25, 2021 was $13 million or $0.21 per diluted share, compared to net income from continuing operations of $13 million or $0.20 per diluted share for the same prior year quarter. The decrease in the diluted earnings per share was primarily due to significant income tax benefits recorded in the prior year.
Income from discontinued operations for the quarter ended September 25, 2021 was $9 million or $0.14 per diluted share, compared to income from discontinued operations of $16 million or $0.25 per diluted share for the same prior year quarter. The decrease in the diluted earnings per share was due to lower lumber sales volumes as only two months of activity are recorded in the current quarter along with a higher income tax expense. As a result of the sale of lumber and newsprint assets, the Company has reclassified certain prior year amounts to conform to the current year presentation for discontinued operations. Unless otherwise stated, information in this press release relates to continuing operations.
“We made great progress on our strategic initiatives in the quarter including completion of the portfolio optimization initiative,” said Paul Boynton, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Along with our sale of the lumber and newsprint assets, we repaid a significant amount of debt and built cash reserves, which will be used to make investments in lowering cost, improving reliability and growing our BioFuture over the coming years. As we experience significant cost inflation and strong demand for cellulose specialties products, which are expected to continue into 2022, it is imperative that we capture fair value for our products to maintain our capital-intensive assets and service our customers. As such, we expect significant price increases on our majority of cellulose specialties contracts in 2022.”
The operating loss for the three-month period ended September 25, 2021, improved by $4 million to $9 million, when compared to the same prior year period primarily due to favorable foreign currency impacts. The operating loss for the nine-month period ended September 25, 2021, improved by $4 million to $33 million when compared to the same prior year period driven by lower variable compensation costs.
Compared to the second quarter of 2021, the operating loss improved by $4 million, to $9 million, during the third quarter ended September 25, 2021, driven primarily by favorable foreign currency impacts.
Rayonier Advanced Materials is a global leader of cellulose-based technologies, including high purity cellulose specialties, a natural polymer commonly found in filters, food, pharmaceuticals and other industrial applications. The Company also manufactures products for paper and packaging markets.
