Glatfelter (NYSE: GLT) reported Q4 EPS of $0.40, $0.02 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.42. Revenue for the quarter came in at $390.9 million versus the consensus estimate of $398.62 million.

"As we expected, this quarter’s results reflect the challenging market conditions we faced throughout much of the year,” said Dante C. Parrini, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Our Composite Fibers’ and Specialty Papers’ results were affected by excess capacity in certain key markets and its impact on product pricing. In addition, both business units were impacted by machine downtime due to lower shipments and to reduce inventory levels. On a positive note, our continuous improvement initiatives are generating significant cost savings allowing us to offset much of the market impacts and our Advanced Airlaid Materials business continued to deliver solid results with record production levels and growth across nearly every product segment.”

Mr. Parrini continued, “While Glatfelter operated in a slow-growth environment during most of 2016, adjusted earnings for the year increased 3% compared with last year due to substantial growth in our Airlaid business and our focus on operational excellence and continuous improvement initiatives. We remain committed to our long-term strategy to grow our engineered material businesses. Despite the more competitive markets in Composite Fibers, we expect to see volume growth in 2017, and we are implementing a cost optimization initiative that is expected to deliver approximately $10 million of annual savings. We anticipate continued growth in our Advanced Airlaid Materials business and we are on track with plans to complete the new Fort Smith, Arkansas facility later this year. At the same time, we remain committed to identifying growth opportunities and driving efficiencies throughout our business.”

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Glatfelter (GLT) click here.