Q4/2025 (year-on-year)

·      Sales decreased by 3% to EUR 2,254 (2,322) million, mainly due to lower board and pulp prices, partly offset by the impact from acquisition of Junnikkala and the consumer board line ramp-up at the Oulu site.

·        Adjusted EBIT decreased by 17% to EUR 100 (121) million, driven by lower pulp prices and adverse currency effects, as well as the ramp-up of the new line in Oulu, which impacted the Q4 result negatively by EUR 31 million. The adjusted EBIT margin decreased to 4.5% (5.2%).

·        Operating result (IFRS) was EUR 476 (-279) million, including items affecting comparability of EUR -90 (-768) million, and fair valuations and other non-operational items of EUR 466 (368) million mainly driven by an increase in the fair value of biological assets in Sweden and Finland.

·        Earnings per share were EUR 0.46 (-0.43) and earnings per share excl. fair valuations (FV) were EUR -0.03 (-0.81).

·        The fair value of the forest assets was EUR 8.5 (8.9) billion, equivalent to EUR 10.75 per share, reflecting the impact of the divestment of 12.4% of forest assets in Sweden.

·        Cash flow from operations amounted to EUR 337 (325) million, positively impacted by improvement in working capital.

·        The net debt to adjusted EBITDA (LTM) ratio improved to 2.8 (3.0).

·        Adjusted ROCE excluding the Forest segment (LTM) was 2.7% (3.6%).

Year 2025 (year-on-year)

·        Sales were EUR 9,326 (9,049) million.

·        Adjusted EBIT was EUR 528 (598) million.

·        Operating result (IFRS) was EUR 942 (93) million.

·        Earnings per share (EPS) were EUR 0.88 (-0.17) and EPS excl. fair valuations (FV) was EUR 0.41 (-0.56).

·        Cash flow from operations amounted to EUR 897 (1,187) million. Cash flow after investing activities was EUR 122 (74) million.

Proposed dividend

The Board of Directors will propose a dividend of EUR 0.25 (EUR 0.25) per share at the Annual General Meeting on 24 March 2026. The Board of Directors proposes that the dividend be paid in two instalments, during the second and fourth quarter of 2026.

Key highlights

·        Stora Enso is preparing for the separation of its Swedish forest assets business into a new publicly listed company, expected to be completed during the first half of 2027.

·        Stora Enso initiated a strategic review of its Central European sawmills and building solutions operations. Different scenarios will be assessed, including the possibility to divest the business, to strengthen Stora Enso's strategic focus on renewable materials and packaging.

·        The ramp-up of the consumer board line at the Oulu site in Finland continues, and the production volumes are gradually increasing. The line is expected to reach full capacity during 2027.

·        Stora Enso has been recognised for its continued leadership in corporate transparency and climate action, earning a place on the 2025 CDP Climate Change `A List'.

·        Stora Enso will change its financial targets and reporting structure starting from 2026, as presented in the Capital Markets Day in November.

Outlook Q1/2026

·          Markets remain challenging, with low consumer confidence. Geopolitical volatility results in decreased predictability.

·          Packaging and pulp market demand is expected to remain stable at low levels.

·          The ramp-up of the new production line in Oulu continues. The EBIT headwind is expected to gradually decrease as we improve the technical performance of the production line. In Q1, we expect a negative impact of EUR 15-30 million on adjusted EBIT.

·          The divestment of 175,000 hectares of forest assets in Sweden, completed in 2025, will result in a reduction of annual adjusted EBIT of approximately EUR 20 million, with an estimated quarterly effect of approximately EUR 5 million.

·          In the first quarter there will be less planned maintenance activities compared to the fourth quarter of 2025. See the section Maintenance for more details.

·          The operating income from emission rights in 2025 was about EUR 72 million, distributed evenly throughout the year. For 2026, the income from the sale of emission rights is projected to decrease to EUR 10-20 million. This decline results from changes in the EU ETS (Emissions Trading Scheme) rules: several sites will lose their free CO₂ allowance allocations from 2026 onward, as their emissions are now more than 95% biogenic, demonstrating the success of long-term emission-reduction initiatives.

·          In the first quarter of 2026 we will introduce a revised reporting structure, as presented in the Capital Markets Day (CMD) in November 2025. The packaging business areas will be consolidated into Consumer Packaging and Integrated Packaging segments. In addition, we will report Biomaterials and Other.

Focus for 2026

·          During 2026 we will execute on the new strategic priorities introduced at the CMD in November 2025:

-         Lead in customer value creation through innovation, quality and sustainability

-         Grow faster than market with superior customer offering, leading technology and operational efficiency

-         Expand margin through business focus, a positive performance culture and systematic value creation

-         Generate cash with high conversion ratio and disciplined capital allocation

·          Furthermore, we will continue to prepare for the separation of the Swedish forest assets business into a new publicly listed company, expected to be completed during the first half of 2027.

·          We will also continue with the strategic review of Central European sawmills and building solutions operations. Different scenarios will be assessed, including the possibility to divest the business, to strengthen Stora Enso's strategic focus on renewable materials and packaging.

·          Finally, we will continue with the ramp-up of the consumer board line at the Oulu site in Finland. The line is expected to reach full capacity during 2027.

Key figures

1 Total forest assets value, including leased land and Stora Enso's share of forest assets in associated companies

2 LTM=Last 12 months
 

Stora Enso's President and CEO Hans Sohlström comments on the results:
2025 was a pivotal year for Stora Enso, marked by decisive actions to sharpen our strategic focus and unlock long-term value for our stakeholders. In the fourth quarter, we reached a significant milestone by completing the strategic review of our Swedish forest assets.

We are separating our Swedish forest assets to unlock value creating two champions with distinctive business dynamics and return profiles: A globally leading renewable materials company with sharpened focus on packaging, and Europe's largest listed pure-play forest company.

Also, we initiated a strategic review of our Central European sawmills and building solutions operations to further sharpen our business focus reflecting our commitment to active portfolio management and ensuring that all our operations are aligned with our long-term value creation goals. 

During the quarter, we also hosted a successful Capital Markets Day (CMD), where we introduced new financial targets, strategic priorities, and a clear roadmap for the coming years. 

Our strategy positions us as a global leader in renewable materials, with an increasing focus on packaging. We are committed to cost efficiency, profitable growth, expanding margins through systematic profit improvement actions, and generating strong cash flow with disciplined capital allocation.

We also introduced a new reporting structure where packaging business areas will be regrouped into Consumer Packaging and Integrated Packaging, alongside Biomaterials and Other. The new reporting segments will be applicable starting in the first quarter of 2026.

Despite a challenging macroeconomic and market environment, Stora Enso delivered resilient results. Group sales for the year were EUR 9.3 billion, with adjusted EBIT of EUR 528 million. Underlying performance improved across all business areas except Biomaterials, which was impacted by lower pulp prices. The ramp-up of the new line at Oulu had an adverse impact on the results. Our net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio improved to 2.8, reflecting the positive impact of the Swedish forest asset divestment of approximately 175,000 hectares of forest land in Sweden, at a value of EUR 900 million, and our ongoing focus on cash flow and cost competitiveness. 

Operationally, we progressed in ramping up the new consumer board line at Oulu, which is central to our strategic focus on renewable packaging. While the ramp-up weighed on profitability in the short term, we remain confident in the long-term value and industry-leading quality this investment will deliver. The acquisition of Junnikkala Oy further strengthened our wood supply chain and supports the competitiveness of our Oulu site.

Our ongoing cost and efficiency actions, combined with a leaner and more business-focused organisational structure with six P&L responsible business areas including the new business area Wood and Energy, and 23 P&L responsible business units, have positioned us well to navigate continued market volatility.

For the second consecutive year, Stora Enso has been included on CDP's Climate Change `A List', highlighting our strong transparency and performance in climate action. This recognition affirms our dedication to sustainable growth through emission reduction, renewable material innovation, and advancing the circular bioeconomy.

Additionally, in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), we completed a pioneering project that offers the forest sector a science-based framework for achieving net-positive biodiversity impact. This collaboration helps forestry operations focus on the most effective actions to reduce species extinction risk while maintaining long-term economic value.

By the end of 2025, we cut Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 61% and Scope 3 emissions by 38% from 2019 levels, surpassing our 2030 target. Additionally, 94% of our products are technically recyclable, and we maintain 99% forest certification coverage.

As we enter 2026, we expect market conditions to remain subdued and volatile, shaped by ongoing macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty. We will continue to execute our strategy and drive proactive, systematic, and determined work across the whole Group.

Our strategic priorities, as set forth in our CMD, are clear: We want to lead in customer value creation, grow our business, expand margins, and generate strong cash flow over the cycle. We will achieve this through our continued actions in sourcing, operational efficiency, commercial excellence, working capital, and fixed costs, while maintaining a disciplined approach to capital allocation.

Customer centricity is now at the forefront of our strategy, driving us to pursue innovation, quality, and sustainability across all aspects of our operations. By delivering superior customer offering and leveraging advanced technologies, we are dedicated to setting new industry standards for excellence.

The demerger and listing of our Swedish forest assets will be a key focus, as will the ongoing strategic review of our Central European wood products business and ramping up the new production line in Oulu, Finland.

At the core of everything we do is people - our customers, employees, shareholders and partners. I want to thank you all for the dedication and resilience during this transformative year. Together, we are building a stronger, more focused, and more sustainable Stora Enso.

Webcast for analysts, investors, and media
Stora Enso's President and CEO Hans Sohlström and CFO Niclas Rosenlew will present the results in a webcast today starting at 11:00 am EET (10:00 CET, 9:00 BST, 4:00 EDT). The live the webcast can be accessed using the following link: https://stora-enso-oyj-results-for-full-year-and-q4-2025.open-exchange.net/

During the webcast presentation, analysts and investors will also have the possibility to ask questions. To participate in the teleconference, please choose the "Teleconference" option on the homepage of the webcast.

Recording of the webcast will be available shortly after the event at the same address and at storaenso.com/en/investors/interim-report.

Media representatives who wish to ask questions after the publication of the report may contact Hanna Rutanen, SVP Communications at Stora Enso on +358 41 507 1361

This release is a summary of Stora Enso's Financial Statements Release 2025. The complete report is attached to this release as a pdf file, and it is also available on the company website at storaenso.com/en/investors/interim-report.

Media enquiries:
Hanna Rutanen
SVP Communications
tel. +358 41 507 1361

Investor enquiries:
Jutta Mikkola
SVP Investor Relations
tel. +358 50 544 6061

Stora Enso is a global leader in renewable materials with a strong focus on packaging. Our purpose is to replace non-renewable materials with renewable solutions. Together with our customers, we design and deliver competitive, high-quality packaging materials and solutions, made from fresh and recycled fibers, accelerating the transition to a circular bioeconomy. Stora Enso has approximately 19,000 employees and our sales in 2025 were EUR 9.3 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA on OTC Markets (OTCQX) as ADRs and ordinary shares (SEOAY, SEOFF, SEOJF). storaenso.com/investors

STORA ENSO OYJ