亚什兰公布 2018 财年第三季度初步财务业绩，表现超出指导性预测，全年收益预期上调

•       本季度特种添加剂部门销售额、利润率、调整后收益取得广泛且强劲的增长

•       预计自然年第三季度将节约运营费用 2,000 万美元，完成年度计划的首个目标，逐步实施此前宣布的息税折旧摊销前利润率 (EBITDA) 加速增长计划

美国肯塔基州卡温顿市，2018 年 7 月 31 日——为广大个人消费品和工业品市场提供优质服务的全球顶尖特种化学品公司亚什兰集团（纽约证交所：ASH）今日公布了 2018 财年第三季度初步⁽¹⁾ 财务业绩：

•      销售额同比增长 12%，达到 9.71 亿美元；

•      公司净收入为 3,600 万美元，与去年同期的财务表现（亏损 3,000 万美元）形成对比。持续经营业务收益为 3,600 万美元，相当于摊薄每股收益为 0.56 美元；

•      调整后持续经营业务收益为 7,200 万美元，相当于摊薄每股收益为 1.13 美元，高于 0.95-1.05 美元的指导性预测，这得益于强劲的运营业绩和实际税率降低；

•      调整后息税折旧摊销前利润 (EBITDA) 达 1.89 亿美元，相比去年同期提高 17%。

亚什兰集团董事会主席及首席执行官武威忠 (William A. Wulfsohn) 表示：“亚什兰团队第三季度继续保持良好势头，向全球顶尖特种化学品公司迈进。三大业务部门的销售额和收益均取得强劲增长。特种添加剂部门表现优异。商业团队通过差异化产品组合再次实现强劲的自然销售额增长，而生产团队切实执行资产利用计划，提高毛利率。各团队严格把控成本，与去年相比，调整后销售、管理及行政 (SG&A) 费用在销售额中的占比下降 70 个基点。特种添加剂部门经营业务收入本季度增长 57%；调整后 EBITDA 上升 18%，其中 Pharmachem 贡献超 1,600 万美元；调整后 EBITDA 利润率提高 210 个基点，达到 24.3%，向完成利润率目标迈出一大步。同时，复合材料部门因销售量上涨、产品组合优化和原材料价格带来的优势，销售额和收益继续大幅增加。化学中间体和溶剂部门受定价和汇率的积极影响，销售额增长达 19%。”

EBITDA 利润率加速增长计划最新进展

5 月初，亚什兰宣布了 EBITDA 利润率加速增长计划，推动亚什兰成为一家更精益、成本结构更具竞争力的公司，实现更高的运营效率、更快的决策过程和更专注的客户服务。亚什兰希望通过该计划削减当前分摊成本、特种添加剂部门 SG&A 费用中的直接支出及生产工厂相关成本共计 1.2 亿美元，具体计划如下：

•      通过成本转移和缩减举措，抵消或降低复合材料业务和德国马尔丁二醇生产工厂的约 7,000 万美元成本，以消除闲置成本。

•      特种化学品部门削减约 5,000 万美元成本，以提高该部门的盈利，加快实现 25-27% 的调整后 EBITDA 利润率。

亚什兰预计于 2019 自然年年底实现全部运营费用节约目标 1.2 亿美元：预计于 2018 自然年第三季度节约 2,000 万美元，第四季度再节约 3,000 万美元，于 2018 自然年年底完成年度运营费用总共降低 5,000 万美元的目标。

武威忠表示：“目前各部门的计划实施进展喜人。初步行动已经展开，预计新的完整计划将于 11 月初完成，并准备全面投入实施。”

各业务部门绩效及前景预期

为协助了解亚什兰当前业务绩效，下文将分别介绍亚什兰各业务部门的调整后业绩。本新闻稿表 5 中的 EBITDA 或调整后 EBITDA 已与营业利润进行对账调节。此外，本新闻稿表 7 中的自由现金流和表 8 中的调整后每股收益已经过对账调节。（欲获取各部门更详细的业绩信息，请参阅 ashland.com 的“Investor Relations”（投资者关系）部分，查看与此次收益发布一并提交给证券交易委员会的演示文稿。）这些调整后结果为非公认会计准则（非 GAAP）财务指标。关于所使用的非 GAAP 财务指标的完整说明，请参阅第 4 页“非 GAAP 指标的使用”部分，该部分对这些调整进行了详细介绍。

特种添加剂

•      销售额增长 8%，达到 6.38 亿美元。销售额上涨得益于销售量的强劲表现、产品组合的优化和定价策略。

•      制药市场销售额上涨 12%，个人护理、粘合剂、涂料市场均上涨 5%，施工/能源市场上涨 13%，营养市场销售额第二季度表现尤为强劲，本季度与去年同期相比持平。有利的外汇汇率变动对销售额总体增长的贡献为 2%。

•      因资产利用计划优化成本分摊，促进产量提高同时降低运营成本，毛利润占销售额的比例上涨 190 个基点，达到 34.9%。

•      得益于持续进行的成本控制举措，SG&A 占销售额的比例同比下降 70 个基点。

•      调整后 EBITDA 上涨 18%，达到 1.55 亿美元，调整后 EBITDA 利润率上升 210 个基点，达到 24.3%。

复合材料

•      销售额上涨 20%，达到 2.5 亿美元。强劲增长得益于该部门一贯的定价策略和几乎所有地区的业务均取得增长。

•      调整后 EBITDA 增长 4%，达到 2,800 万美元。

化学中间体和溶剂

•      得益于产品价格的持续走强，销售额增长了 19%，达到 8,300 万美元。

•      该季度调整后 EBITDA 为 1,700 万美元，去年同期调整后 EBITDA 约为 1,000 万美元。

资产负债表和现金流

•      总负债为 25 亿美元。

•      净负债为 24 亿美元。

•      本季度，持续经营业务所提供的现金总额为 1.3 亿美元，去年同期为 1.33 亿美元。

•      自由现金流为 8,800 万美元，去年同期为 8,000 万美元。2018 财年第三季度自由现金流中包含重组支付费用 800 万美元，去年同期自由现金流中包含重组支付费用 2,100 万美元。

前景预期

尽管亚什兰提供了调整后 EBITDA、自由现金流和摊薄每股收益的指导性预测，但公司并未重申或提供采用美国一般公认会计原则 (GAAP) 的财务指标预期，或非 GAAP 财务指标预期与最直接可比较的美国 GAAP 指标的对账结果。并未包含此种对账结果的原因是，亚什兰在能力可及范围内无法估计和量化最直接可比较的 GAAP 指标，主要由于对公司未来经营业绩的预测受许多难以预测的因素影响，这些因素不受亚什兰控制且不属于亚什兰日常经营活动的范畴，其中包括各种国内和国际的经济、政治、立法、监管和法律因素。

亚什兰 2018 财年第四季度调整后摊薄每股收益预期为 0.90-1.00 美元，去年同期摊薄每股收益为 0.78 美元。这一预测基于第四季度实际税率为 19% 的假定。

亚什兰预计 2018 财年全年调整后每股收益在 3.50-3.60 美元之间，同比增长 43-48%。2018 财年自由现金流预计达 1.7 亿美元，包括约 5,000 万支付业务拆分、重组相关费用。请参阅下表获取更多关于公司 2018 财年前景预期的信息。

*包括约 5,000 万支付业务拆分、重组相关费用。

欲获取亚什兰第三季度的更多财务信息，请参阅与本新闻稿一同发布的演示文稿。

电话会议网络直播

亚什兰将于 2018 年 8 月 1 日周三上午 9 点（美国东部夏令时间）进行第三季度证券分析师电话会议网络直播。届时可登陆亚什兰网站http://investor.ashland.com收看网络直播。直播结束后12个月内，可在亚什兰网站获取网络直播及相关资料的存档版本。

Use of Non-GAAP Measures

Ashland believes that by removing the impact of depreciation and amortization and excluding certain non-cash charges, amounts spent on interest and taxes and certain other charges that are highly variable from year to year, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA provide Ashland’s investors with performance measures that reflect the impact to operations from trends in changes in sales, margin and operating expenses, providing a perspective not immediately apparent from net income and operating income. The adjustments Ashland makes to derive the non-GAAP measures of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA exclude items which may cause short-term fluctuations in net income and operating income and which Ashland does not consider to be the fundamental attributes or primary drivers of its business. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA provide disclosure on the same basis as that used by Ashland's management to evaluate financial performance on a consolidated and reportable segment basis and provide consistency in our financial reporting, facilitate internal and external comparisons of Ashland’s historical operating performance and its business units and provide continuity to investors for comparability purposes.

Key items are defined as financial effects from significant transactions that, either by their nature or amount have caused short-term fluctuations in net income and/or operating income which Ashland does not consider to most accurately reflect Ashland's underlying business performance and trends. Further, Ashland believes that providing supplemental information that excludes the financial effects of these items in the financial results will enhance the investor’s ability to compare financial performance between reporting periods.

Tax-specific key items are defined as financial transactions, tax law changes or other matters that fall within the definition of key items as described above. These items relate solely to tax matters and would only be recorded within the income tax caption of the Statement of Consolidated Income. As with all key items, due to their nature, Ashland does not consider the financial effects of these tax-specific key items on net income to be the most accurate reflection of Ashland's underlying business performance and trends.

The free cash flow metric enables Ashland to provide a better indication of the ongoing cash being generated that is ultimately available for both debt and equity holders as well as other investment opportunities. Unlike cash flow provided by operating activities, free cash flow includes the impact of capital expenditures from continuing operations, providing a more complete picture of cash generation. Free cash flow has certain limitations, including that it does not reflect adjustment for certain non-discretionary cash flows such as mandatory debt repayments. The amount of mandatory versus discretionary expenditures can vary significantly between periods.

Adjusted diluted earnings per share is a performance measure used by Ashland and is defined by Ashland as earnings (loss) from continuing operations, adjusted for identified key items and divided by the number of outstanding diluted shares of common stock. Ashland believes this measure provides investors additional insights into operational performance by providing the diluted earnings per share metric that excludes the effect of the identified key items and tax specific key items.

About Ashland

Ashland Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ASH) is a premier global specialty chemicals company serving customers in a wide range of consumer and industrial markets, including adhesives, architectural coatings, automotive, construction, energy, food and beverage, personal care and pharmaceutical. At Ashland, we are approximately 6,500 passionate, tenacious solvers - from renowned scientists and research chemists to talented engineers and plant operators - who thrive on developing practical, innovative and elegant solutions to complex problems for customers in more than 100 countries. Visit ashland.com to learn more.

C-ASH

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Ashland has identified some of these forward-looking statements with words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “expects,” “estimates,” “is likely/，"predicts," “projects,” “forecasts,” “objectives,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “plans” and "intends” and the negative of these words or other comparable terminology. Ashland may from time to time make forward-looking statements in its annual reports, quarterly reports and other filings with the SEC, news releases and other written and oral communications. These forward-looking statements are based on

Ashland's expectations and assumptions, as of the date such statements are made, regarding Ashland's future operating performance and financial condition, as well as the economy and other future events or circumstances. Ashland's expectations and assumptions include, without limitation, internal forecasts and analyses of current and future market conditions and trends, management plans and strategies, operating efficiencies and economic conditions (such as prices, supply and demand, cost of raw materials, and the ability to recover raw-material cost increases through price increases), and risks and uncertainties associated with the following: the program to eliminate certain existing corporate and Specialty Ingredients expenses (including the possibility that such cost eliminations may not occur or may take longer to implement than anticipated), the expected divestiture of its Composites segment and the butanediol (BDO) manufacturing facility in Marl, Germany, and related merchant Intermediates and Solvents (l&S) products (including, in each case, the possibility that a transaction may not occur or that, if a transaction does occur, Ashland may not realize the anticipated benefits from such transaction), the impact of acquisitions and/or divestitures Ashland has made or may make, including the acquisition of Pharmachem (including the possibility that Ashland may not realize the anticipated benefits from such transactions); Ashland's substantial indebtedness (including the possibility that such indebtedness and related restrictive covenants may adversely affect Ashland’s future cash flows, results of operations, financial condition and its ability to repay debt); Ashland’s ability to generate sufficient cash to finance its stock repurchase plans; the potential that Ashland does not realize all of the expected benefits of the separation of its Valvoline business; the potential that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted on December 22, 2017, will have a negative impact on Ashland’s financial results; and severe weather, natural disasters, cyber events and legal proceedings and claims (including product recalls, environmental and asbestos matters). Various risks and uncertainties may cause actual results to differ materially from those stated, projected or implied by any forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties affecting Ashland that are described in Ashland’s most recent Form 10-K (including Item 1A Risk Factors) filed with the SEC, which is available on Ashland’s website at http://investor.ashland.com or on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. Ashland believes its expectations and assumptions are reasonable, but there can be no assurance that the expectations reflected herein will be achieved. Unless legally required, Ashland undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

^⑴ Preliminary Results

Financial results are preliminary until Ashland’s Form 10-Q is filed with the SEC. 

™ Trademark, Ashland or its subsidiaries, registered in various countries.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Investor Relations:

Seth A. Mrozek

+1 (859) 815-3527

samrozek@ashland.com

Media Relations:

Gary Rhodes

+1 (859) 815-3047

glrhodes@ashland.com

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