4Q EBITDA increased to Euro 363 million (14.1% of sales) from the Euro 334 million (13.2% of sales) in the comparison period.
Reported operating profit was Euro 220 million, 8.5% of sales. Operating profit includes net charges of Euro 5 million as special items. Profit for 4Q 2015 was Euro 193 million, and earnings per share were Euro 0.36.
2015 sales were Euro 10,138 million, 3% higher than Euro 9,868 million in 2014. Sales grew in UPM Biorefining, UPM Raflatac and UPM Paper Asia and decreased in UPM Paper ENA and UPM Energy. Sales remained at the same level in UPM Plywood.
FY 2015 EBITDA increased to Euro 1,350 million (13.3% of sales) from Euro 1,306 million (13.2% of sales) in the comparison period.
Reported operating profit was Euro 1,142 million, 11.3% of sales. Profit for 2015 was Euro 916 million, and earnings per share were Euro 1.72.
Jussi Pesonen, President and CEO, comments on 4Q and full year 2015 results: "UPM finished 2015 on a strong note. 4Q was the best of the year thanks to solid business performance. The profit improvement programme exceeded its target and the growth projects started to deliver earnings. EBITDA reached a higher level than in five years and our strong cash flow drove net debt to a new record-low level.
The UPM Kymi pulp mill expansion was a success and we reached a record-high pulp production in December. UPM Biofuels picked up steam as the year went on and reached a break-even level during the last quarter. UPM Changshu's speciality paper machine ramp-up started well in December and UPM Raflatac's investments have already contributed to our earnings during the second half of the year.
It is worth pointing out that much of the good performance was driven by our own actions. UPM Biorefining and UPM Raflatac were the highlights of the quarter both in terms of own profitability actions and good timing in growth projects. UPM Energy and UPM Plywood showed solid performances. UPM Paper ENA had its best quarter of 2015 thanks to continuous profit improvement actions. UPM Paper Asia's performance was supported by own cost actions as the business faced increased regional competition."
Through the renewing of the bio and forest industries, UPM is building a sustainable future across six business areas: UPM Biorefining, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Paper Asia, UPM Paper Europe and North America and UPM Plywood.
