Greif, Inc.

Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Greif Second Quarter 2025 earnings call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press star 11 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising that your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press star 11 again. Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the call over to your speaker today, Bill D'Onofrio, VP of Investor Relations and Corporate Development. Please begin.

Thank you, and good day, everyone. Welcome to GRIF's fiscal second quarter 2025 earnings conference call. Today, our CEO, Ole Rosgaard, will begin with an update on our colleague and customer engagement, as well as progress on our cost optimization commitment. He will then discuss key global market trends. Our CFO, Larry Hilsheimer, will walk through second quarter financial results and 2025 guidance. Please turn to slide two. In accordance with regulation fair disclosure, please ask questions regarding topics you consider important because we are prohibited from discussing material nonpublic information with you on an individual basis. During today's call, we will make forward-looking statements involving plans, expectations, and beliefs related to future events. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Additionally, we will be referencing certain non-GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP metrics that can be found in the appendix of today's presentation. I'll now hand this all over to Ole on slide three.

Thank you, Bill, and good morning, everyone. I want to start by recognizing our more than 14,000 colleagues across the world. Their discipline, focus, and execution continue to drive strong performance. In Q2, we made further progress under our built-to-last strategy. Despite ongoing macroeconomic volatility, our resilient business model and emphasis on controlling what we can control give us confidence in the road ahead. That confidence is reflected in our decision to raise full-year guidance which Larry will walk through shortly. Our culture remains a core competitive advantage. I'm proud to report that we have once again been named one of Newsweek's top 100 most loved workplaces in the world. This marks our third consecutive year on the list. In addition, we received Gallup's Exceptional Workplace Award for the second year in a row, Our colleague engagement score places us in the 86th percentile of all manufacturing companies globally with a remarkable 94% participation rate. These recognitions speak to the pride our teams take in their work and the environment we built where people feel empowered, valued and connected to our purpose. That engagement drives legendary customer service. Our fiber team was recently honored with the Supplier Innovation Award from the US Postal Service. USPS joined us in 2024 and is now a key customer for our Dallas sheet feeder facility. This award is a strong validation of the long-term value and customer loyalty we create. Sustainability also sets us apart. While we view it as the right thing to do, it is also a clear business advantage. This marks our 16th consecutive year publishing sustainability report, a rare track record in our industry. Our sustainability strategy is central to strengthening customer relationships and pursuing durable high margin growth. Please turn to slide four. Our cost optimization efforts are progressing rapidly thanks to our team's focus and willingness to embrace change. As of quarter end, we have achieved 10 million in run rate savings toward our full year commitment of 15 to 25 million and 100 million total commitments compared to our 2024 baseline. A few highlights of projects on the way. A thank you to our colleagues in Warminster, ALSEP, Wellcome and OSCOS. Our operations and engineering teams are embracing change and utilizing Six Sigma practices to advance scalable and structural change in process efficiency and scrap reduction across our metal and fiber production plants. Second, we made a strategic decision to close our LA paperboard mill removing 72,000 tons of capacity. While difficult, this step streamlines our network and improves long-term performance across our fiber operations. These are just two of many projects on the way. Each day, our conviction grows in our ability to achieve or exceed both our 2025 and 2027 commitments. Across the board, our strategy is working. We are sharpening our competitive edge, optimizing operations, and expanding in high-return markets that positions us well when demand accelerates. Please turn to slide five. Our portfolio continues to show resilience with especially strong performance in the areas we are investing. polymer solutions volumes improved year over year with small containers and IVC both up. That impact was partially offset by lower large polymer drawn volumes due to softer industrial demands. Our polymers growth was driven by our target growth in markets of agrochemicals, food and beverage, pharma, and flavors and fragrances. which all showed year-over-year growth. This contrasts with metals, which was down 5% year-over-year due to exposure to chemical and lubricant markets, which continues to be softer. Fiber solution volumes were down slightly compared to last year, but improved each month throughout the quarter. Our corrugated business outperformed and was up high single digits per day versus an industry decline of 2%. This differentiation was driven by strong independent demand. Integrated solutions saw continued growth led by recycled fiber, while external volumes and closures paints, linings, and adhesives held steadily as we managed our own internal needs versus external demands. It is interesting to note that last year was a leap year, giving one additional day of business as well. Demand remained stable across all regions outside North America. In North America, softness persisted due to greater exposure to industrial end markets. The key takeaway across the previous four slides is clear. Our strategy is working. We are investing in resilience, high growth markets, reinforcing our competitive strengths, and optimizing our cost base simultaneously. This all prepares us to capture even further upside when demand meaningfully rebounds. Please turn to slide six. In closing, I want to briefly touch on a topic which demonstrates the resilience of our business model. On tariffs, we are staying ahead of potential disruption. Year to date, we have not seen major demand shifts tied directly to tariffs, but we continue to monitor demand patterns and talk closely with customers to identify any potential impacts on our end markets. Our network of more than 250 facilities in over 40 countries allows us to buy, produce and sell locally. This flexibility minimizes disruption, serves our customers' needs more flexibly than competition and allows us to obtain a fair price for the additional exceptional service and adaptability we provide our customers. Our global sourcing team continues to assess risk and we reaffirm that our maximum direct cost exposure is less than 10 million annually. Although that figure at present is even lower due to mitigation actions and tariffs currently in effect versus worst case scenario. Meanwhile, we are capturing more value through network flexibility and pricing. We are also benefiting from pass-through mechanisms in our metals business as steel producers respond to raw material inflation. With that, I'll turn it over to Larry to walk through our Q2 financial performance on slide 7.