European Packaging and Paper: Foodservice Packager Preview: Steady Top-Line Growth; Margins to Improve in 2H

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European Packaging and Paper: Foodservice Packager Preview: Steady Top-Line Growth; Margins to Improve in 2H

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15 Jul 2026 00:30:00 ET │ 19 pages

European Packaging and Paper

Foodservice Packager Preview: Steady Top-Line Growth; Margins to

Improve in 2H

Ephrem Ravi AC

CITI'S TAKE +44-20-7986-2462

We reiterate our Buy ratings on both Huhtamaki (HUH) and SIG Group (SIG), ephrem.ravi@citi.com

viewing their resilient business models as attractive amid current macro Ashish Khetan

uncertainty. We are lowering our HUH target price marginally to €35 (from

€36), reflecting a 2–3% cut to FY26–27 EBIT estimates on near-term margin +91-22-4277-5121

pressure in North America and Foodservice. Conversely, we slightly raise our ashish.khetan@citi.com

SIG target price to SFr 15.20 (from SFr 14.70), reflecting a slight increase in

our medium-term estimates on expectations for better margins. We

forecast modest LFL sales growth for both companies for 2Q26, with HUH

facing soft consumer demand while SIG benefits from resilient aseptic

packaging demand. Despite short-term headwinds including raw material

volatility, we believe both are poised for solid margin improvement in the

medium term and their valuations look attractive.

Huhtamaki: Cautiously Positive Outlook — We expect Huhtamaki's trading

conditions to remain stable. Growth will be driven by demand for sustainable fiber

packaging and a gradual volume recovery. We forecast flattish 2Q26 LFL sales

growth of 1.2%. Near-term margins face pressure from soft North American demand

and input cost volatility. We trim FY26–27e EBIT estimates by 2–3%, but the

valuation remains attractive at an 8x FY27e EV/EBITDA multiple.

SIG Group: Constructive Outlook on Resilient Demand — Our constructive outlook