APTARGROUP, INC. - Annual Report: 2017 (Form 10-K)

 

United States Securities and Exchange Commission

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10‑K

 

FOR THE TRANSITION PERIOD FROM            TO           

COMMISSION FILE NUMBER 1‑11846

AptarGroup, Inc.

 

475 WEST TERRA COTTA AVENUE, SUITE E, CRYSTAL LAKE, ILLINOIS 60014

815‑477‑0424

Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 (g) of the Act:

NONE

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well‑known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15 (d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S‑T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).

 

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S‑K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10‑K or any amendment to this Form 10‑K. ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non‑accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer”, “accelerated filer”, “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b‑2 of the Exchange Act.

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b‑2 of the Act).

 

The aggregate market value of the common stock held by non‑affiliates as of June 30, 2017 was $5,835,925,185.

The number of shares outstanding of common stock, as of February 19, 2018, was 62,111,611 shares.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the definitive Proxy Statement to be delivered to stockholders in connection with the Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held May 2, 2018 are incorporated by reference into Part III of this report.

 

 

 

AptarGroup, Inc.

FORM 10‑K

For the Year Ended December 31, 2017

INDEX

 

 

 

 

PART I

ITEM 1.  BUSINESS

BUSINESS OF APTARGROUP

We are a leading global provider of a broad range of innovative packaging, dispensing and sealing solutions, primarily for the beauty, personal care, home care, prescription drug, consumer health care, injectables, food and beverage markets. Our creative packaging solutions enhance the convenience, safety and security of consumers around the globe and allow our customers to differentiate their products in the market.

Our business was started in the late 1940’s, manufacturing and selling aerosol valves in the United States, and has grown primarily through the acquisition of relatively small companies and internal expansion. We were incorporated in Delaware in 1992. In this report, we may refer to AptarGroup, Inc. and its subsidiaries as “AptarGroup”, “Aptar” or the “Company”.

We have manufacturing facilities located throughout the world including North America, Europe, Asia and South America. We have approximately 5,000 customers with no single customer or group of affiliated customers accounting for greater than 7% of our 2017 net sales.

Consumers’ preference for convenience and product differentiation through packaging design are important to our customers and they have converted many of their packages from non-dispensing formats to dispensing systems that offer enhanced shelf appeal, convenience, cleanliness and accuracy of dosage.

While we offer a wide variety of dispensing and sealing solutions, our primary products are dispensing pumps, closures, aerosol valves and elastomeric primary packaging components.

Dispensing pumps are finger‑actuated dispensing systems that dispense a spray or lotion from non‑pressurized containers. The style of pump used depends largely on the nature of the product being dispensed, from small, fine mist pumps used with perfume and pharmaceutical products to lotion pumps for more viscous formulas.

Closures are primarily dispensing closures but to a lesser degree can include non‑dispensing closures. Dispensing closures are plastic caps which allow a product to be dispensed without removing the cap.

Aerosol valves dispense product from pressurized containers. The majority of the aerosol valves that we sell are continuous spray valves, with the balance being metered dose valves.

We also manufacture and sell elastomeric primary packaging components. These components are used in the injectables market. Products include stoppers for infusion, antibiotic, lyophilization and diagnostic vials. Our elastomeric components also include pre‑filled syringe components, such as plungers, needle shields, tip caps and cartridges, as well as dropper bulbs and syringe plungers.

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

Our periodic and current reports, and any amendments to those reports, are available, free of charge, through a link on the Investors page of our website (www.aptar.com), as soon as reasonably practicable after the material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).   These filings are also available to the public over the Internet at the SEC’s website (http://www.sec.gov).  You may also read and copy any document we file with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549.  Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the reference room.

Also posted on our website are the charters for our Audit, Management Development and Compensation, Governance and Executive Committees, our Governance Principles, our Code of Business Conduct & Ethics, our Director Independence Standards and our Conflict Minerals Statement. Within the time period required by the SEC and the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), we will post on our website any amendment or waiver to the Code of Business Conduct & Ethics applicable to any executive officer or director. The information provided on our website is not part of this report and is therefore not incorporated herein by reference.

OUR STRATEGY

We seek to enhance our position as a leading global provider of innovative packaging dispensing and sealing solutions and deliver increased value to our customers and stockholders through strategic focus and execution in the following areas:

Facilitating the execution of our strategy are our core values, which dictate how we interact internally and externally with our customers, suppliers and all stakeholders.

DESCRIPTION OF APTARGROUP’S REPORTING SEGMENTS

INFORMATION ABOUT SEGMENTS

AptarGroup’s organizational structure consists of three market‑focused business segments which are Beauty + Home, Pharma and Food + Beverage. This is a strategic structure which allows us to be more closely aligned with our customers and the markets in which they operate. We primarily sell our products through our own sales force to beauty, personal care, pharmaceutical, home care, food and beverage marketers. To a limited extent, we use independent representatives and distributors to increase our reach to smaller customers and export markets. 

Operations that sell dispensing systems and sealing solutions primarily to the beauty, personal care and home care markets form the Beauty + Home segment. Operations that sell dispensing systems and sealing solutions to the prescription drug, consumer health care and injectables markets form the Pharma segment. Operations that sell dispensing systems and sealing solutions to the food and beverage markets form the Food + Beverage segment. Each of these three business segments is described more fully below. A summary of sales, segment income and total assets based upon this reporting structure for each of the last three years is shown in Note 17 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 (which is incorporated by reference herein).

BEAUTY + HOME

The Beauty + Home segment is our largest segment in terms of net sales and total assets representing 53% and 43% of AptarGroup’s Net Sales and Total Assets, respectively, in 2017. The Beauty + Home segment primarily sells pumps, closures, aerosol valves, accessories and sealing solutions to the personal care and home care markets and pumps and decorative components to the beauty market. We believe we are a leading supplier for the majority of the products we sell primarily to the beauty and personal care markets.

Beauty.  Sales to the beauty market accounted for approximately 48% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017. The beauty market requires a broad range of spray and lotion pumps, closures, elastomeric flow-control components and sampling dispensing systems to meet functional as well as aesthetic requirements. A considerable amount of research, time and coordination with our customers is required to qualify a pump for use with their products. Within the market, we expect the use of pumps to continue to increase, particularly in the cosmetics and sampling sectors. In the cosmetic sector, packaging for certain products such as natural and organic cosmetics and anti‑aging lotions continue to provide us with growth opportunities. We are a leading provider of packaging solutions for prestige and mass market fragrance products. Our cosmetic lotion pumps, airless dispensing systems, lotion sampling devices and decorative capabilities will also provide growth opportunities. We see continued growth opportunities in Latin America and significant opportunities for growth in the sale of our products for cosmetic applications in Asia.

Personal Care.  Sales to the personal care market accounted for approximately 44% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017 and primarily included sales of fine mist spray pumps, lotion pumps, closures, elastomeric flow-control components and continuous spray aerosol valves. Personal care spray pump applications include hair care, body care and sun care products. Typical lotion pump applications include skin moisturizers, hand sanitizers and soap. Personal care closures applications include shampoos and conditioners. Personal care continuous spray aerosol valve applications include hair care products, deodorants, shaving creams and sun care products. Our research and development teams continue to design unique accessories that increase the value of our continuous spray aerosol valve offerings.

Home Care.  Sales to the home care market accounted for approximately 8% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017 and primarily included sales of continuous or metered dose spray aerosol valves, closures and to a lesser degree spray and lotion pumps. Applications for continuous spray valves include disinfectants, spray paints, insecticides and automotive products. Metered dose valves are used for air fresheners. Closure applications include liquid detergents, automotive products and household cleansers. Spray and lotion pump applications primarily include household, insect repellant and industrial cleaners.

PHARMA

The Pharma segment is our second largest segment in terms of net sales and total assets, accounting for 33% and 28% of AptarGroup’s Net Sales and Total Assets, respectively, in 2017 and is our most profitable segment. We believe we are a leading supplier of pumps and metered dose inhaler valves (“MDIs”) to the pharmaceutical market worldwide and we are a supplier of elastomer for injectable primary packaging components worldwide. Characteristics of this market include (i) governmental regulation of our pharmaceutical customers, (ii) contaminant‑controlled manufacturing environments and (iii) a significant amount of time and research from initially working with pharmaceutical companies at the molecular development stage of a medication through the eventual distribution to the market. We have clean‑room manufacturing facilities in Argentina, China, France, Germany, India, Switzerland and the United States. We believe that providing an alternative to traditional medication forms such as pills with value‑added, convenient dispensing systems will continue to offer opportunities for our business. In addition, we believe there are opportunities for growth in the over-the-counter and generic pharmaceutical categories.

Prescription Drug.  Sales to the prescription drug market accounted for approximately 54% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017. Pumps sold to the prescription drug market deliver medications nasally, orally or topically. Currently the majority of our pumps sold are for nasal allergy treatments. Recently, there is a trend of nasal allergy products moving from prescription‑only to being sold over-the-counter without a prescription. This trend could provide us with growth opportunities as this movement could allow consumers easier access to these types of treatments. Our nasal pumps and unit dose devices are also used to deliver pain management products. Potential opportunities for providing alternatives to traditional pill and injectable dosage forms of medication include pump dispensing systems for vaccines, cold and flu treatments, central nervous systems applications and hormone replacement therapies.

MDIs are used for dispensing precise amounts of aerosolized medication. This technology allows medication to be broken up into very fine particles, which enables the drug to be delivered typically via the pulmonary system. Currently the majority of our MDIs sold are used for respiratory ailments such as asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

We continue to develop new dispensing systems and accessories in this segment.  For example, we provide single dose delivery devices suitable for central nervous system applications. While we expect that these types of new products will come to market in the future, it is difficult to estimate when, as the rigors of pharmaceutical regulations affect the timing of product introductions by our pharmaceutical customers which use our dispensing systems.

Consumer Health Care.  Sales to the consumer health care market accounted for approximately 27% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017. Applications for this market are similar to the prescription market; however, these applications are sold over-the-counter without a prescription. Typical consumer health care spray pump applications include nasal decongestants, nasal salines and cough and cold applications. Typical consumer health care valve applications include nasal saline using our bag‑on valve technology. We have developed a multi dose ophthalmic dispensing device suitable for unpreserved formulations. This technology is successfully marketed in Europe, North America and Latin America and is under development for other markets both for over-the-counter and prescription applications. Other products sold to this market include airless pump systems for dermal drug delivery applications. We have recently seen a trend to more child resistant and senior‑friendly packaging solutions and have developed products to meet these market needs.

Injectables.  Sales to the injectables market accounted for approximately 19% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017. Injectables are elastomeric primary packaging components for injectable drug delivery. Injectable products offered include stoppers for vials and pre‑filled syringe components, such as plungers, needle shields, tip caps and components for cartridges. Our recent investment in this business allows us to market coated stoppers which better preserve the contents of the vial and adds value to our customers and the consumer. Pharmaceutical applications for this market include vaccines, anti‑thrombotic, small molecules and biologics.

FOOD + BEVERAGE

The Food + Beverage segment is our smallest segment in terms of net sales and total assets representing 14% and 9% of AptarGroup’s Net Sales and Total Assets, respectively, in 2017 but has been experiencing strong product growth over recent years. We primarily sell dispensing closures and, to a lesser degree, non‑dispensing closures, elastomeric flow control components, spray pumps and aerosol valves.

Sales of dispensing closures have grown as consumers worldwide have demonstrated a preference for a package utilizing the convenience of a dispensing closure. At the same time, consumer marketers are trying to differentiate their products by incorporating performance enhancing features such as bonded aluminum liners to plastic, flow‑control and no‑drip dispensing, inverted packaging and directional flow to make packages simpler to use, cleaner and more appealing to consumers.  We also have a number of product solutions that address the increased use of flexible packaging formats.

Food.  Sales to the food market accounted for approximately 61% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017 and primarily include sales of dispensing closures and elastomeric flow‑control components. To a lesser degree we also sell non‑dispensing closures, continuous spray aerosol valves and spray pumps to this market. Applications for dispensing closures include sauces, condiments, infant nutrition and other food products. Applications for continuous spray aerosol valves include cooking sprays. Spray pump applications primarily include butter or salad dressing sprays.

Beverage.  Sales to the beverage market accounted for approximately 39% of the segment’s total net sales in 2017 and primarily include sales of dispensing closures and elastomeric flow‑control components. Sales of dispensing closures to the beverage market have increased significantly over the last several years as we continue to see an increase of interest from marketers using dispensing closures for their products. Examples of beverage products currently utilizing dispensing closures include bottled water, sport and energy drinks, juices and concentrated water flavorings.

GENERAL BUSINESS INFORMATION

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Our commitment to innovation, one of our competitive strengths, has resulted in an emphasis on research and development directed toward developing affordable, new, innovative packaging delivery solutions and adapting existing products for new markets or customer requirements. In certain cases, our customers share in the research and development expenses of customer initiated projects. Occasionally, we acquire or license from third parties technologies or products that are in various stages of development. Expenditures for research and development activities, net of certain research and development credits, were $68.2 million, $66.2 million and $67.1 million in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

PATENTS AND TRADEMARKS

We customarily seek patent and trademark protection for our products and brands. We own and currently have numerous applications pending for patents and trademarks in many regions of the world. In addition, certain of our products are produced under patent licenses granted by third parties. We believe that we possess certain technical capabilities in making our products that make it difficult for a competitor to duplicate. While valuable to our overall product portfolio, sales of any one individually patented product are not considered material to any specific segment or to the Company’s consolidated results.

TECHNOLOGY

We have technical expertise regarding injection molding, robotics, clean-room facilities and high‑speed assembly. We also have expertise regarding the formulation and finishing of elastomer and silicone components. In addition, we offer a variety of sterilization options for elastomeric components for the pharmaceutical industry. Pumps and aerosol valves require the assembly of several different plastic, metal and rubber components using high‑speed equipment. When molding dispensing closures, or plastic components to be used in pump or aerosol valve products, we use advanced plastic injection molding technology, including large cavitation plastic injection molds. We are able to mold within tolerances as small as one one‑thousandth of an inch and we assemble products in a high‑speed, cost‑effective manner. We are experts in molding liquid silicone that is used in certain dispensing closures as well as rubber gasket formulation and production primarily for the prescription drug and consumer health care markets.

MANUFACTURING AND SOURCING

The majority of our worldwide production is located outside of the United States. Our philosophy is to produce as much as possible in the region where it will be sold. In order to augment capacity and to maximize internal capacity utilization (particularly for plastic injection molding), we use subcontractors to supply certain plastic, metal and rubber components. Certain suppliers of these components have unique technical abilities that make us dependent on them, particularly for aerosol valve and pump production. The principal raw materials used in our production are plastic resins, silicone, rubber and certain metal products. We believe an adequate supply of such raw materials is available from existing and alternative sources. We attempt to offset cost increases through improving productivity and developing new, higher margin solutions and increasing selling prices, as allowed by market conditions or contractual commitments. Our pharmaceutical products often use plastic resin and rubber components specifically approved by our customers. Significant delays in receiving these components or discontinuance of an approved raw material would require us to seek alternative sources, which could result in higher costs as well as impact our ability to supply products in the short-term.

BACKLOG

Our sales are primarily made pursuant to standard purchase orders for delivery of products. While most orders placed with us are ready for delivery within 120 days, we continue to experience a trend towards shorter lead times requested by our customers. Some customers place blanket orders, which extend beyond this delivery period. However, deliveries against purchase orders are subject to change, and only a small portion of the order backlog is noncancelable. The dollar amount associated with the noncancelable portion is not material. Therefore, we do not believe that backlog as of any particular date is an accurate indicator of future results.

CUSTOMERS

We have approximately 5,000 customers with no single customer or group of affiliated customers accounting for greater than 7% of 2017 net sales. A consolidation of our customer base has been occurring and this trend is expected to continue. A concentration of customers presents opportunities for increasing sales due to the breadth of our product line, our international presence and our long‑term relationships with certain customers. However, consolidation of our customers could lead to pricing pressures, concentration of credit risk and fewer opportunities to introduce new products to the market.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

We are geographically diverse with manufacturing and sales operations in Asia, Europe, Latin America (including Mexico) and North America.  Europe is our largest region where sales for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 were approximately 58%, 57% and 56%, respectively. Asia and Latin America when aggregated represented approximately 16%, 16% and 17% of our consolidated sales for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. Export sales from the United States were $152.8 million, $165.1 million and $151.2 million in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. We are a net exporter of goods from the U.S. and Europe and a net importer of goods to the Asian and Latin American regions. For additional financial information about geographic areas, please refer to Note 17 in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 (which is incorporated by reference herein).

FOREIGN CURRENCY

Because of our international presence, movements in exchange rates have a significant impact on the translation of the financial statements of our foreign subsidiaries. Our primary foreign exchange exposure is to the Euro, but we have foreign exchange exposure to the Chinese Yuan, Brazilian Real, Mexican Peso, Swiss Franc and other Asian, European and South American currencies. A weakening U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies has an additive translation effect on our financial statements. Conversely, a strengthening U.S. dollar has a dilutive effect. We manage our exposures to foreign exchange principally with forward exchange contracts to economically hedge recorded transactions and firm purchase and sales commitments denominated in foreign currencies.

WORKING CAPITAL PRACTICES

Collection and payment periods tend to be longer for our operations located outside the United States due to local business practices. We have also seen an increasing trend in pressure from certain customers to lengthen their payment terms. As the majority of our products are made to order, we have not needed to keep significant amounts of finished goods inventory to meet customer requirements.  However, some of our contracts specify an amount of finished goods safety stock we are required to maintain.

To the extent our financial position allows and there is a clear financial benefit, we from time-to-time benefit from early payment discounts with some suppliers.

EMPLOYEE AND LABOR RELATIONS

AptarGroup has approximately 13,200 full‑time employees. Of the full‑time employees, approximately 8,200 are located in Europe, 3,000 are located in Asia and South America and the remaining 2,000 are located in North America. The majority of our European and Latin American employees are covered by collective bargaining arrangements made at either the local or national level in their respective countries and approximately 140 of the North American employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement. Termination of employees at certain of our international operations could be costly due to local regulations regarding severance benefits. There were no material work stoppages in 2017 and management considers our employee relations to be satisfactory.

COMPETITION

All of the markets in which we operate are highly competitive and we continue to experience price competition in all product lines and markets. Competitors include privately and publicly held entities that range from regional to international companies. We expect the market for our products to remain competitive. We believe our competitive advantages are consistent high levels of innovation, quality and service, geographic diversity, financial strength and stability and breadth of products. Our manufacturing strength lies in the ability to mold complex plastic components and formulate and finish elastomer and silicone components in a cost‑effective manner and to assemble products at high speeds. Our business is somewhat capital intensive and it is becoming more important to our customers for Aptar to have global manufacturing capabilities. Both of these serve as barriers to entry for new competitors wanting to enter our business.

While we have experienced some competition in Europe, Latin America and the United States from low cost Asian suppliers, particularly in the low‑end beauty and personal care market, this has not been significant. Although using low cost Asian supplies may have a cost advantage, some customers prefer local suppliers citing better quality, better customer service and shorter lead times. 

ENVIRONMENT

Our manufacturing operations primarily involve plastic injection molding, automated assembly processes, elastomer and silicone formulation and finishing and, to a limited degree, metal anodization and vacuum metallization of plastic components. Historically, the environmental impact of these processes has been minimal, and we believe we meet current environmental standards in all material respects. To date, our manufacturing operations have not been significantly affected by environmental laws and regulations relating to the environment.

Recently there is increased interest and awareness from consumers, and from our customers, in environmentally sustainable products, especially through the sourcing of sustainable materials. We are focused on reducing our environmental impacts through product life cycle assessments, sustainable material trials, operational eco-efficiency initiatives and renewable energy sourcing. We are designing for sustainability by providing products that improve recyclability and use less material. Future regulations on environmental matters regarding recycling or material inputs could impact our business.

GOVERNMENT REGULATION

Certain of our products are indirectly affected by government regulation. Demand for aerosol and pump packaging is affected by government regulations regarding the release of volatile organic compounds (“VOCs”) into the atmosphere. Europe and the United States have regulations that require the reduction in the amount of VOCs that can be released into the atmosphere and the potential exists for this type of regulation to expand worldwide. These regulations required certain of our customers to reformulate certain aerosol and pump products, which may have affected the demand for such products. We own patents and have developed systems to function with alternative propellant and product formulations.

Future government regulations could include healthcare cost containment policies. For example, reviews by various governments to determine the number of drugs, or prices thereof, that will be paid by their insurance systems could affect future sales of our pharmaceutical customers’ products and thus adversely impact our sales to these customers. Such regulation could adversely affect prices of and demand for our pharmaceutical products. We believe that the focus on the cost effectiveness of the use of medications as compared to surgery and hospitalization provides us with an opportunity to expand sales to the pharmaceutical market.

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Our executive officers as of February 26, 2018 are as follows:

 

There were no arrangements or understandings between any of the executive officers and any other person(s) pursuant to which such officers were elected.

ITEM 1A.  RISK FACTORS

Set forth below and elsewhere in this report and in other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission are risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to materially differ from the results contemplated by the forward‑looking statements contained in this report and in other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us, or that we currently deem immaterial, may also impair our business operations. You should carefully consider the following factors in addition to other information contained in this report on Form 10‑K before purchasing any shares of our common stock.

If there is deterioration in economic conditions in a particular region or market, our business and operating results could be materially adversely impacted.  Due to our strong balance sheet, diverse product offerings, various end‑markets served, and our broad geographic presence, we believe we are well positioned to withstand slowness in any one particular region or market.  However, economic uncertainties affect businesses such as ours in a number of ways, making it difficult to accurately forecast and plan our future business activities. A tightening of credit in financial markets or other factors may lead consumers and businesses to postpone spending, which may cause our customers to cancel, decrease or delay their existing and future orders with us. In addition, financial difficulties experienced by our suppliers, customers or distributors could result in product delays, increased accounts receivable defaults, inventory or supply challenges and pricing pressures. An interruption in supply may also impact our ability to meet customer demands. Consumer demand for our customers’ products and shifting consumer preferences are unpredictable and could have a negative impact on our customers and our customers’ demand for our products.

We face strong global competition and our market share could decline.  All of the markets in which we operate are highly competitive and we continue to experience price competition in all product lines and segments. Competitors include privately and publicly held entities. Our competitors mainly range from regional to international companies. If we are unable to compete successfully, our market share may decline, which could materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Geopolitical conditions, including direct or indirect acts of war or terrorism, could have a material adverse effect on our operations and financial results.  Our operations could be disrupted by geopolitical conditions such as international boycotts and sanctions, acts of war, terrorist activity or other similar events. Such events could make it difficult or impossible to manufacture or deliver products to our customers, receive production materials from our suppliers, or perform critical functions, which could adversely affect our business globally or in certain regions. While we maintain similar manufacturing capacities at different locations and coordinate multi‑source supplier programs on many of our materials which would better enable us to respond to these types of events, we cannot be sure that our plans will fully protect us from all such disruptions. In addition, our customers may export their finished products using our dispensing devices that were sold in other regions and an adverse geopolitical event may impact the sales of our customers’ products and thus indirectly negatively impact the demand for our dispensing solutions.

We have foreign currency translation and transaction risks that may materially adversely affect our operating results.  A majority of our operations are located outside of the United States. Because of this, movements in exchange rates may have an impact on the translation of the financial statements of our foreign entities. Our primary foreign exchange exposure is to the Euro, but we have foreign exchange exposure to the Chinese Yuan, Brazilian Real, Mexican Peso, Swiss Franc, and other Asian, European and South American currencies. A weakening U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies has an additive translation effect on our financial statements. Conversely, a strengthening U.S. dollar has a dilutive translation effect. In some cases, we sell products denominated in a currency different from the currency in which the related costs are incurred. We manage our exposures to foreign exchange principally with forward exchange contracts to economically hedge certain transactions and firm purchase and sales commitments denominated in foreign currencies. The volatility of currency exchange rates may materially affect our operating results.

Government regulation on environmental matters regarding recycling or environmental sustainability policies could impact our business.  Future government regulations mandating the use or limitations of certain materials could impact our manufacturing processes or the technologies we use forcing us to invest in alternative materials or assets used in the production of our products.

Future government regulations of healthcare cost containment policies may impact our pharmaceutical sales.  Review by governments of the number of drugs and prices thereof that will be paid by their insurance systems could affect future sales to the pharmaceutical industry and thereby adversely affect prices of and demand for our pharmaceutical products.

Consolidation of customer base could impact our business.  We believe mergers and acquisitions within our customer base create opportunities for increasing sales due to the breadth of our product line, our international presence and our long‑term relationships with certain customers. However, consolidation of our customers could lead to pricing pressures, concentration of credit risk and fewer opportunities to introduce new products to the market.

If our expansion initiatives are unsuccessful, our operating results and reputation may suffer.  We are expanding our operations in a number of markets, including facilities expansions in North America, Europe and Asia. Expansion of our operations require a significant amount of time and attention from our senior management and/or capital investment. These activities present considerable challenges and risks, including the general economic and political conditions in the markets that we enter, attracting, training and retaining qualified and talented employees, infrastructure disruptions, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, the imposition of restrictions by governmental authorities, compliance with current, new and changing governmental laws and regulations and the cost of such compliance activities. If any of our expansion efforts are unsuccessful, our operating results and reputation may suffer. 

The success or failure of our customers’ products, particularly in the pharmaceutical market, may materially affect our operating results and financial condition.  In the pharmaceutical market, the proprietary nature of our customers’ products and the success or failure of their products in the market using our dispensing systems may have a material impact on our operating results and financial condition. We may potentially work for years on modifying our dispensing device to work in conjunction with a customer’s drug formulation. If the customer’s pharmaceutical product is not approved by regulatory bodies or it is not successful on the market, the associated costs may not be recovered.

Higher raw material costs and other inputs and an inability to increase our selling prices may materially adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.  The cost of raw materials and other inputs (particularly plastic resin, rubber, metal, anodization costs and transportation and energy costs) are volatile and susceptible to rapid and substantial changes due to factors beyond our control, such as changing economic conditions, currency fluctuations, weather conditions, political unrest and instability in energy‑producing nations, and supply and demand pressures. Raw material costs may increase in the coming years and, although we have generally been able to increase selling prices to cover increased costs, future market conditions may prevent us from passing these increased costs on to our customers through timely price increases. In addition, we may not be able to improve productivity or realize savings from our cost reduction programs sufficiently enough to offset the impact of increased raw material costs. As a result, higher raw material costs could result in declining margins and operating results.

In difficult market conditions, our fixed costs structure combined with potentially lower revenues may negatively impact our results.  Our business is characterized by relatively high fixed costs and, notwithstanding our utilization of third‑party manufacturing capacity, most of our production requirements are met by our own manufacturing facilities. In difficult environments, we are generally faced with a decline in the utilization rates of our manufacturing facilities due to decreases in product demand. During such periods, our plants do not operate at full capacity and the costs associated with this excess capacity are charged directly to cost of sales. Difficult market conditions in the future may adversely affect our utilization rates and consequently our future gross margins, and this, in turn, could have a material negative impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

If our unionized employees were to engage in a strike or other work stoppage, our business, operating results and financial position could be materially adversely affected.  The majority of our European and Latin American employees are covered by collective bargaining arrangements made either at the local or national level in their respective countries and approximately 140 of our North American employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement. Although we believe that our relations with our employees are satisfactory, no assurance can be given that this will continue. If disputes with our unions arise, or if our unionized workers engage in a strike or other work stoppage, we could incur higher labor costs or experience a significant disruption of operations, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial position.

Single sourced materials and manufacturing sites could adversely impact our ability to deliver product.  The Company sources certain materials, especially some resins and rubber components for our pharmaceutical segment, from a single source. Any disruption in the supply of these materials could adversely impact our ability to deliver product to our customers. Similarly, we have certain components and / or products that are manufactured at a single location or from a single machine or mold. Any disruption to the manufacturing process could also adversely impact our ability to deliver product to our customers. 

If we were to incur a significant product liability claim above our current insurance coverage, our business, operating results and financial condition could be materially adversely affected. The failure of our devices to operate as intended may result in a product liability claim against us. We believe we maintain adequate levels of product liability insurance coverage. A product liability claim in excess of our insurance coverage or not covered by existing insurance may materially adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.

Increased cybersecurity threats could pose a risk to our operations.  Increased global information security threats and more sophisticated, targeted computer crime pose a risk to the confidentiality, availability and integrity of our data, operations and infrastructure. We continue to assess potential threats and make investments seeking to reduce the risk of these threats by employing a number of security measures, including employee training, comprehensive monitoring of our networks and systems, and maintenance of backup and protective systems. We also periodically test our systems for vulnerabilities and have on occasion used a third party to conduct such tests. To date, we have seen no material impact on our business or operations from these threats; however, we cannot guarantee that our security efforts will prevent unauthorized access or loss of functionality to our or our third-party providers’ systems. Even with these mitigations, our information systems remain potentially vulnerable to sophisticated cybersecurity threats. Depending on their nature and scope, such threats could potentially lead to the compromise of confidential information, improper use of our systems and networks, manipulation and destruction of data, production downtimes and operational disruptions, which in turn could adversely affect our reputation, competitiveness and results of operations. 

We have approximately $443.9 million in recorded goodwill at December 31, 2017, and changes in future business conditions could cause this asset to become impaired, requiring write‑downs that would reduce our operating income.  We evaluate the recoverability of goodwill amounts annually, or more frequently when evidence of potential impairment exists. The impairment test is based on several factors requiring judgment. A decrease in expected reporting unit cash flows or changes in market conditions may indicate potential impairment of recorded goodwill and, as a result, our operating results could be materially adversely affected. See “Critical Accounting Estimates” in Part II, Item 7 for additional information.

We are subject to tax regulations in the many jurisdictions in which we operate, and changes in tax regulations could materially impact our results.  Future changes in tax laws or in the interpretation of tax laws in jurisdictions where we have significant operations could materially impact our provision for income taxes, the amount of taxes payable and our deferred tax asset and liability balances.  We recorded a provisional tax expense of $24.7 million in 2017 related to the tax law changes enacted in the U.S. This amount could materially change as we continue to evaluate the law and its impacts on our business and as additional regulatory guidance is issued.

We are currently implementing a business transformation plan, with the main objective to return our Beauty + Home segment to historical growth and profit margins.  Certain elements of this transformation plan can be disruptive to our business and our associates if we do not manage the change properly.  Furthermore, the transformation plan may take longer to complete than currently expected, may be more costly to complete than currently expected and may not be successful in returning Beauty + Home to historical growth and profit margins.  Any such effects could materially adversely impact our business.

Ownership by Certain Significant Stockholders.  Currently, Aptar has four institutional stockholders who each own between 6% and 11% of our outstanding common stock. None of these stockholders have direct representation on our Board of Directors.  If one of these stockholders decides to sell significant volumes of our stock, this could put downward pressure on the price of the stock.

ITEM 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

The Company has no unresolved comments from the SEC.

ITEM 2.  PROPERTIES

We lease or own our principal offices and manufacturing facilities. None of the owned principal properties is subject to a lien or other encumbrance material to our operations. We believe that existing operating leases will be renegotiated as they expire, will be acquired through purchase options or that suitable alternative properties will be leased on acceptable terms. We consider the condition and extent of utilization of our manufacturing facilities and other properties to be generally good, and the capacity of our plants to be adequate for the needs of our business. The locations of our principal manufacturing facilities, by country, are set forth below:

 

We also have sales personnel in countries other than those listed above.  Our corporate office is located in Crystal Lake, Illinois.

ITEM 3.  LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The Company, in the normal course of business, is subject to a number of lawsuits and claims both actual and potential in nature. While management believes the resolution of these claims and lawsuits will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position or results of operations or cash flows, claims and legal proceedings are subject to inherent uncertainties, and unfavorable outcomes could occur that could include amounts in excess of any accruals which management has established. Were such unfavorable final outcomes to occur, it is possible that they could have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.

ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II

ITEM 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY

Our Common Stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ATR. Information regarding market prices of our Common Stock and dividends declared may be found in Note 21 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 (which is incorporated by reference herein). As of February 19, 2018, there were approximately 215 holders of record of our Common Stock. A substantially greater number of holders of our Common Stock are “street name” or beneficial holders, whose shares of record are held by banks, brokers, and other financial institutions.

RECENT SALES OF UNREGISTERED SECURITIES

Certain French employees are eligible to participate in the FCP Aptar Savings Plan (the “Plan”). An independent agent purchases shares of Common Stock available under the Plan for cash on the open market and we do not issue shares. We do not receive any proceeds from the purchase of Common Stock under the Plan. The agent under the Plan is Banque Nationale de Paris Paribas Fund Services. No underwriters are used under the Plan. All shares are sold in reliance upon the exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933 provided by Regulation S promulgated under that Act. During the quarter ended December 31, 2017, the Plan purchased 1,417 shares of our Common Stock on behalf of the participants at an average price of $85.62 per share, for an aggregate amount of $121 thousand, and sold 2,380 shares of our Common Stock on behalf of the participants at an average price of $85.85 per share, for an aggregate amount of $204 thousand. At December 31, 2017, the Plan owned 74,173 shares of our Common Stock.

ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

On October 20, 2016, the Company announced a share repurchase authorization of up to $350 million of Common Stock.  This authorization replaces previous authorizations and has no expiration date.  Aptar may repurchase shares through the open market, privately negotiated transactions or other programs, subject to market conditions.

The Company spent $48.3 million to repurchase approximately 555 thousand shares during the fourth quarter of 2017.

The following table summarizes the Company’s purchases of its securities for the quarter ended December 31, 2017:

SHARE PERFORMANCE

The following graph shows a five year comparison of the cumulative total stockholder return on AptarGroup’s Common Stock as compared to the cumulative total return of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Composite Stock Price Index and to an index of peer group companies we selected. The companies included in the peer group are: A. Schulman, Inc., Bemis Company, Inc., Berry Global Group, Inc., Crown Holdings, Inc., Graphic Packaging Holding Company, Greif Inc., H.B. Fuller Company, International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc., KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation, Owen’s‑Illinois, Inc., Packaging Corporation of America, PH Glatfelter Company., Rayonier Inc., Sealed Air Corporation, Sensient Technologies Corporation, Silgan Holdings, Inc., Sonoco Products Company, Stepan Company, TriMas Corporation and West Pharmaceutical Services Inc.

Comparison of 5 Year Cumulative Stockholder Returns

The graph and other information furnished in the section titled “Share Performance” under this Part II, Item 5 of this Form 10‑K shall not be deemed to be “soliciting” material or to be “filed” with the Securities and Exchange Commission or subject to Regulation 14A or 14C, or to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

 

ITEM 6.  SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

FIVE YEAR SUMMARY OF SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

ITEM 7.  MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

(Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts or as otherwise indicated)

The objective of the following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Consolidated Results of Operations and Financial Condition (“MD&A”) is to help the reader understand the financial performance of AptarGroup, Inc. MD&A is presented in eight sections: Overview, Results of Operations, Liquidity and Capital Resources, Off‑Balance Sheet Arrangements, Overview of Contractual Obligations, Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements, Critical Accounting Estimates, Operations Outlook and Forward‑Looking Statements. MD&A should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements contained elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10‑K.

In MD&A, “we,” “our,” “us,” “AptarGroup,” “AptarGroup, Inc.”, “Aptar” and the “Company” refer to AptarGroup, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries.

OVERVIEW

GENERAL

We are a leading global provider of a broad range of innovative packaging dispensing and sealing solutions primarily for the beauty, personal care, home care, prescription drug, consumer health care, injectables, food and beverage markets. Our creative packaging solutions enhance the convenience, safety and security of consumers around the globe and allow our customers to differentiate their products in the market.

In addition to the information presented herein that conforms to U.S. GAAP, we also present certain financial information that does not conform to U.S. GAAP, which are referred to as non-U.S. GAAP financial measures. Management may assess our financial results both on a U.S. GAAP basis and on a non-U.S. GAAP basis. We believe it is useful to present these non-U.S.GAAP financial measures because they allow for a better period over period comparison of operating results by removing the impact of items that, in management’s view, do not reflect Aptar’s core operating performance. These non-U.S. GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for U.S. GAAP financial results, but should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated statements of income and other information presented herein. Investors are cautioned against placing undue reliance on these non-U.S. GAAP measures. Further, investors are urged to review and consider carefully the adjustments made by management to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measure to arrive at these non-U.S. GAAP financial measures.  See the reconciliation of non-U.S. GAAP measures starting on page 23.  

For the year ended December 31, 2017, reported sales increased 6% to $2.5 billion from $2.3 billion a year ago. Excluding the positive impacts from changes in currency exchange rates and acquisitions, core sales increased approximately 4%. A reconciliation of core sales growth to reported net sales growth, the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measure, can be found on page 16. During 2017, we developed a business transformation plan to address challenges within Beauty + Home and began implementing company-wide operating, commercial and innovation excellence initiatives. With the start of some of these initiatives and the strong finish to the year, our Beauty + Home segment achieved core sales growth for 2017. Our Pharma segment delivered another strong year with core sales growth in each end market, and we invested in additional capacity to better serve our customers in the U.S. injectables market.  Our Food + Beverage segment also grew core sales in each end market, primarily driven by strong demand for our innovative dispensing closures in the infant nutrition and bottled water categories.  We also broke ground in the second half of the year on a new facility in southern China to position us for growth in this critical country and across Asia. Due to the execution of our growth strategy, each segment reported core sales growth in 2017 within their long-term target rates.  We increased core sales in each region and within each market, with the exception of home care, as demand for our dispensing and drug delivery systems was strong.

2017 HIGHLIGHTS

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following table sets forth the consolidated statements of income and the related percentages of net sales for the periods indicated:

NET SALES

For the year ended December 31, 2017, reported net sales increased 6% to $2.47 billion from $2.33 billion a year ago.  The average U.S. dollar exchange rate weakened compared to the Euro while the impact of the other major currencies related to our business was mixed.  This resulted in a positive currency translation impact of 1%.  The February 29, 2016 acquisition of Mega Airless positively impacted sales by 1%.  Therefore, sales excluding acquisitions and changes in foreign currency rates (“core sales”) increased 4% over the prior year. 

 

In 2016, we reported net sales of $2.33 billion, 1% above 2015 reported net sales of $2.32 billion.  While the average U.S. dollar exchange rate compared to the Euro remained stable, the U.S. dollar strengthened compared to the majority of other currencies impacting our business, resulting in a negative currency translation impact of 2%.  The acquisition of Mega Airless positively impacted sales by 3%.  Therefore, core sales were even with the prior year. 

 

Foreign currency effects are approximations of the adjustment necessary to state the prior year net sales using current period exchange rates. For further discussion on net sales by reporting segment, please refer to the segment analysis of net sales and operating income on the following pages.

The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, net sales by geographic location:

 

COST OF SALES (EXCLUSIVE OF DEPRECIATION AND AMORTIZATION SHOWN BELOW)

Our cost of sales as a percent of net sales increased to 65.0% in 2017 compared to 64.3% in 2016.  Our cost of sales percentage was negatively impacted by approximately $6.1 million of higher material costs in 2017 compared to 2016. The main driver was higher resin costs.  We also experienced continued operational inefficiencies in our custom decorative packaging business in Europe. Tooling sales were also approximately $10.1 million higher in 2017 compared to the prior year.  Sales of custom tooling typically generates lower margins than product sales, so higher tooling sales negatively impacts cost of sales as a percentage of sales. 

In 2016, our cost of sales as a percent of net sales decreased to 64.3% compared to 64.8% in 2015.  The decrease was due to the mix of sales across our different business segments.  Our Pharma segment sales represented a higher percentage of our overall sales in 2016 compared to 2015. This positively impacts our cost of sales percentage as margins on our pharmaceutical products typically are higher than the overall Company average. Also, tooling sales were approximately $7.3 million lower in 2016 compared to the prior year.  As mentioned above, sales of custom tooling typically generate lower margins than product sales, so lower tooling sales positively impacts cost of sales as a percentage of sales.  We also realized lower raw material input costs, which helped offset $2.6 million of incremental costs due to a purchase accounting adjustment related to the write-up to fair value of the Mega Airless inventory in 2016.  Results in 2015 were positively impacted by the $7.4 million change in accounting principle related to inventory valuation methods in the prior year. 

SELLING, RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE

Our Selling, Research & Development and Administrative expenses (“SG&A”) increased approximately 6% or $20.7 million to $388.3 million in 2017 compared to $367.6 million in 2016.  Excluding changes in foreign currency rates, SG&A increased by approximately $16.9 million compared to the same period a year ago.  The increase is mainly due to increases in professional fees and salary expenses related to specific projects during the third and fourth quarters of 2017 along with other normal inflationary increases.  During 2017, we also recognized $1.3 million of professional fees related to our acquisition of a minority investment in Kali Care, Inc. and $1.5 million of incremental operating costs related to the two additional months of Mega Airless activity.  We also recognized $2.5 million of additional long-term incentive compensation costs related to the performance of our common stock, $1.5 million for the estimated costs to remediate environmental contamination found at the Company’s facility in Brazil and $1.3 million of higher research & development costs due to lower research tax credits available in certain jurisdictions during 2017. These increases were partially offset by one-time transaction costs of $5.6 million related to the Mega Airless acquisition in 2016, which did not repeat in 2017. Due to higher sales, SG&A as a percentage of net sales decreased to 15.7% compared to 15.8% in the same period of the prior year.

In 2016, our SG&A increased approximately 5% or $16.1 million compared to the same period a year ago.  Excluding changes in foreign currency rates, SG&A increased by approximately $22.9 million compared to the same period a year ago.  The increase is mainly due to transaction costs of $5.6 million related to the Mega Airless acquisition, along with $8.5 million of Mega Airless operational expenses. We also incurred higher information technology costs associated with our ongoing enterprise resource planning system implementation along with general increases in compensation expense.  For 2016, SG&A as a percentage of net sales increased to 15.8% compared to 15.2% in the same period of the prior year.

DEPRECIATION AND AMORTIZATION

Reported depreciation and amortization expense decreased approximately 1% or $1.7 million to $153.1 million in 2017 compared to $154.8 million in 2016.  Excluding changes in foreign currency rates, depreciation and amortization decreased by approximately $4.0 million compared to the same period a year ago.  The decrease is due to several large investments becoming fully depreciated during 2017 partially offset by incremental depreciation and amortization costs of $2.6 million related to the two additional months of Mega Airless activity in 2017. As depreciation expenses decreased due to the lapsing of these large investments, depreciation and amortization as a percentage of net sales decreased to 6.2% compared to 6.6% in the same period a year ago.

In 2016, depreciation and amortization expense increased approximately 11% or $15.9 million compared to the same period a year ago.  Excluding changes in foreign currency rates, depreciation and amortization increased by approximately $18.0 million compared to the same period a year ago.  The increase is mainly due to $14.0 million of incremental depreciation and amortization related to the Mega Airless acquisition along with incremental costs associated with our continued investments in new products and the roll-out of our global enterprise resource planning system.  Due to these higher expenses, depreciation and amortization as a percentage of net sales increased to 6.6% compared to 6.0% for the same period a year ago.

RESTRUCTURING INITIATIVES

In late 2017, Aptar began a business transformation plan to drive profitable sales growth, increase operational excellence, enhance our approach to innovation and improve organizational effectiveness.  The primary focus of the plan will be the Beauty + Home segment; however, certain global general and administrative functions will also be addressed.  During 2017, we recognized approximately $2.2 million of restructuring costs related to this plan with approximately $0.5 million being reported within the Beauty + Home segment and $1.7 million being reported within the Food + Beverage segment.  Using current exchange rates, we estimate total implementation costs of approximately $90 million over the next three years. We also anticipate making capital investments related to the transformation plan of approximately $45 million in 2018.  We expect this business transformation plan to yield annualized incremental EBITDA of approximately $80 million by 2020, principally within the Beauty + Home segment. 

OPERATING INCOME

Operating income increased approximately $11.0 million or 4% to $321.5 million in 2017 compared to $310.5 million in 2016. Excluding changes in currency rates, operating income increased by approximately $7.6 million in 2017 compared to 2016.  Higher sales along with lower depreciation and amortization expenses more than offset higher SG&A and restructuring costs.  However, reported operating income as a percentage of net sales decreased to 13.0% in 2017 compared to 13.3% for the same period in the prior year as incremental sales volumes were not at the same gross margin percentage mainly due to higher cost of sales as discussed above.

In 2016, operating income decreased approximately $13.6 million or 4% to $310.5 million compared to $324.1 million in 2015. The prior year’s operating income includes the positive impact of $7.4 million from a change in accounting principle related to inventory valuation methods.  Excluding changes in currency rates and the effects of this change in accounting principle, operating income decreased approximately $1.9 million in 2016.  Improvements in our gross margin were offset by higher SG&A and depreciation and amortization costs along with $5.6 million of Mega Airless acquisition costs and a $2.6 million purchase accounting adjustment related to the write-up to fair value of the Mega Airless inventory which was purchased and subsequently sold during the first quarter of 2016.  Reported operating income as a percentage of net sales decreased to 13.3% in 2016 compared to 14.0% for the same period in the prior year due to the same factors mentioned above.

NET OTHER EXPENSES

Net other expenses in 2017 decreased to $26.7 million compared to $30.0 million in 2016.  This decrease is mainly driven by a $10.6 million gain on insurance recovery related to a fire in our Annecy, France facility and an additional $2.8 million of interest income on U.S. cash balances available after our current year repatriation activities.  These decreases in net other expenses were offset by $4.7 million of incremental interest expense incurred to prepay two of our private placement facilities during the fourth quarter of 2017. Prior year results also included a $2.0 million gain on the sale of our minority interest in an injectable drug delivery device company in 2016. 

In 2016, net other expenses increased to $30.0 million compared to $29.6 million in 2015.  We recognized lower interest income and higher interest expense as we funded our Mega Airless acquisition with cash on hand and borrowings on our revolving line of credit.  We also recognized a $2.0 million gain on the sale of our minority interest in an injectable drug delivery device company in 2016 while we reported a $2.9 million gain due to an insurance recovery on the involuntary conversion of fixed assets related to a fire in one of our Brazilian facilities in 2015.

EFFECTIVE TAX RATE

The reported effective tax rate on net income for 2017 and 2016 was 25.4% and 26.7%, respectively.  The lower tax rate for 2017 reflects a benefit from the new accounting standard for employee share-based payments, which the Company adopted in 2017 (-3.5%).  The current year also includes items attributable to the U.S. tax legislation as described below.  The tax rate impact from the legislation includes a provisional tax charge related to the tax on unremitted earnings (+10.7%) which is partially offset by a provisional deferred tax benefit related to the enacted lower U.S. corporate tax rate (-2.3%).  The current year tax rate also includes a benefit from the resolution of a forward contract transaction (-8.1%).  The comparable prior year reflects higher tax benefits from European investment incentives (+1.4%).

On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “TCJA”). The TCJA makes broad and complex changes to the U.S. tax code that impacted 2017 results including, but not limited to:

The TCJA also puts in place new tax laws that will impact our taxable income beginning in 2018, which include, but are not limited to:

Shortly after the TCJA was enacted, the SEC staff issued Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118, Income Tax Accounting Implications of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“SAB 118”) which provides guidance on accounting for the TCJA’s impact. SAB 118 provides a measurement period, which in no case should extend beyond one year from the TCJA enactment date, during which a company acting in good faith may complete the accounting for the impacts of the TCJA under ASC Topic 740. In accordance with SAB 118, the Company must reflect the income tax effects of the TCJA in the reporting period in which the accounting under ASC Topic 740 is complete.

To the extent that a company’s accounting for certain income tax effects of the TCJA is incomplete, the Company can determine a reasonable estimate for those effects and record a provisional estimate in the financial statements in the first reporting period in which a reasonable estimate can be determined.

The transition tax is a 2017 tax on the previously untaxed accumulated and current earnings and profits (“E&P”) of our foreign subsidiaries. In order to determine the amount of the transition tax, we must determine, in addition to other factors, the amount of post-1986 E&P of the subsidiaries, as well as the amount of non-U.S. income taxes paid on such E&P. We were able to make a reasonable estimate of the transition tax and recorded a provisional transition tax obligation of $31.6 million which we expect to be fully offset by the utilization of foreign tax credits.

To reflect the reduction of the U.S. corporate tax rate, we have recorded a provisional adjustment to our net deferred tax balances, with a corresponding discrete net tax provisional benefit of $6.8 million in the current period. 

The TCJA includes a provision designed to currently tax GILTI starting in 2018. Due to the complexity of the new GILTI tax rules, we are continuing to evaluate this provision of the TCJA and the application of ASC Topic 740.  We are also considering available accounting policy alternatives. For these reasons, we are not yet able to reasonably estimate the effect of this provision of the TCJA. Therefore, we have not made any adjustments relating to potential GILTI tax in our financial statements and have not made a policy decision regarding our accounting for GILTI.

The transition tax noted above results in the previously untaxed foreign earnings being included in the U.S. federal and state 2017 taxable income. Therefore, as of December 31, 2017, the Company does not have a balance of earnings that have not been subject to U.S. taxation.  We are currently analyzing our global working capital requirements and the potential tax liabilities that would be incurred if the non-U.S. subsidiaries made a distribution of their cash or distributable reserves. The liabilities would include local country withholding and income tax and potential U.S. state taxation. As of December 31, 2017, the cash or distributable reserve amounts will continue to be reinvested indefinitely and would become subject to these additional taxes if they were remitted as dividends. We estimate the additional tax that would be payable on these earnings to be in the range of $25 million to $35 million.

The reported effective tax rate on net income for 2016 and 2015 was 26.7% and 32.3%, respectively.  The lower tax rate for 2016 reflects the reduction in the French corporate tax rate (1.7%) and higher investment incentives in both France and Italy (2.2%).  The Company also recorded a benefit from the resolution of uncertain tax positions in France and Italy (0.8%) during 2016.

NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO APTARGROUP, INC.

We reported net income of $220.0 million compared to $205.6 million reported in 2016 and $199.3 million reported in 2015.

BEAUTY + HOME SEGMENT

Reported net sales increased approximately 4% in 2017 to $1.31 billion compared to $1.26 billion in 2016. The Mega Airless acquisition positively impacted net sales by 1% in 2017 while changes in currency rates positively impacted net sales by 1%.  Therefore, core sales increased 2% in 2017 compared to the same period in the prior year. The majority of this increase is due to higher product sales.  Tooling sales and the pass-through of higher resin prices to our customers also positively impacted sales by $4.0 million and $0.6 million, respectively. Core sales to the personal care and beauty markets each increased 2% while core sales to the home care market declined slightly during 2017 compared to the same period in the prior year.  The beauty market increased as strong sales to the facial skin care application field and higher sampling and promotion sales more than offset lower sales to our prestige fragrance market.  The personal care markets also showed improvement over the prior year due to strong body care and hair care application field sales. Sales to the home care market decreased 1% as new product sales to the automotive market were not able to completely offset lower insecticide sales, predominately in North America and Latin America related to the unusually high demand for these products in 2016.

 

In 2016, reported net sales decreased approximately 1% to $1.26 billion compared to $1.27 billion in 2015. The Mega Airless acquisition positively impacted net sales by 4% in 2016 while changes in currency rates negatively impacted net sales by 3%.  Therefore, core sales decreased 2% in 2016 compared to the same period in the prior year. The majority of this decrease is due to lower tooling sales and the pass-through of lower resin prices to our customers, which negatively impacted sales for 2016 by $15.4 million and $4.5 million, respectively. Core sales to the beauty market were flat while core sales to both the personal care and home care markets declined 4% during 2016 compared to the same period in the prior year.  For the beauty market, growth in sales of our products to the color cosmetics and facial skin care application fields were offset by lower tooling sales.  Sales of our products to the personal care markets experienced soft customer demand across their main application fields with the exception of body care.  Strong insecticide and industrial product sales to the home care market were offset by lower customer demand in laundry care.

 

Segment income for 2017 decreased to $93.8 million from $100.6 million reported in 2016. Gains on sales volume increases were offset by higher material costs and operational inefficiencies, mainly in our custom decorative packaging business in Europe. As discussed above, we have initiated a business transformation plan to address these challenges. During 2017, we also recognized a charge of $1.5 million for the estimated costs to remediate environmental contamination found at the Company’s anodizing facility in Brazil.

Segment income for 2016 increased slightly to $100.6 million from $98.7 million reported in 2015, in spite of the decrease in net sales. The increase compared to the prior year is partly related to our mix of product sales due to the contribution of airless product sales related to our Mega Airless acquisition.  We also continue to focus on operational and material cost savings initiatives. Segment income was negatively impacted by $2.2 million due to a purchase accounting adjustment related to the write-up to fair value of the Mega Airless inventory we purchased and subsequently sold during the first quarter.

PHARMA SEGMENT

 

Reported net sales increased approximately 9% in 2017 to $805.9 million compared to $741.5 million in 2016. Changes in currency rates positively impacted net sales by 1%.  Therefore, core sales increased 8% in 2017 compared to the same period in the prior year. All three markets reported increases during 2017 with core sales to the prescription drug, consumer health care and injectables markets increasing 7%, 7% and 9%, respectively. Consumer health care realized strong demand for our products used on nasal decongestants and nasal salines. The prescription drug market reported core sales increases across all applications with strong sales of our devices used on asthma, COPD and allergic rhinitis products driving the growth in 2017.  Core sales of our products to the injectables markets increased due to improved sales of our components used on antithrombotic and small molecule products. For the segment, customer tooling sales, excluding foreign currency changes, decreased $3.2 million in 2017 to $30.1 million compared to $33.3 million in the prior year.

 

In 2016, reported net sales increased approximately 4% to $741.5 million compared to $712.2 million in 2015. The Mega Airless acquisition positively impacted net sales by 1% in 2016 while changes in currency rates negatively impacted net sales by 2%.  Therefore, core sales increased 5% in 2016 compared to the same period in the prior year. All three markets reported increases during 2016 with core sales to the prescription drug, consumer health care and injectables markets increasing 2%, 11% and 4%, respectively. Prescription growth was led by strong demand for allergic rhinitis and central nervous system product sales.  We also experienced strong demand for our products sold to the eye care and dermal drug delivery application fields in the consumer health care market. Injectables sales also grew across the majority of their application fields. Customer tooling sales, excluding foreign currency changes, increased $11.2 million in 2016 to $31.5 million compared to $20.3 million in the prior year.

 

Segment income for 2017 increased approximately 7% to $234.8 million compared to $219.0 million in 2016. Strong sales volumes across all three markets were able to offset unfavorable manufacturing variances, $1.3 million of professional fees related to our acquisition of a minority investment in Kali Care, Inc. and start-up costs related to our new injectable capacity in North America.