UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March 1, 2019
SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY
Commission File No. 001-11261
| Incorporated under the laws | I.R.S. Employer Identification | |||||||
| of South Carolina | No. 57-0248420 | |||||||
1 N. Second St.
Hartsville, South Carolina 29550
Telephone: 843/383-7000
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company ¨
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| [ ] | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) | ||||
| [ ] | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) | ||||
| [ ] | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) | ||||
| [ ] | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) | ||||
Section 5 - Corporate Governance and Management
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
Effective March 1, 2019, Julie C. Albrecht, who had been named CFO-elect in December 2018, assumed responsibilities as the Company's Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mrs. Albrecht replaces Barry L. Saunders, Senior Vice President and most recent CFO, who is retiring from Sonoco on April 1. These events were previously disclosed in the Company's Form 8-K filed on December 3, 2018, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Compensation arrangements for Mrs. Albrecht, effective March 1, 2019, include an annual base salary of $483,000, a performance-based annual cash incentive equal to 70% of base pay at target achievement, and a one-time
officer grant of $150,000 of restricted stock units. This grant has a five year vesting schedule and will vest in one-third increments on the 3rd, 4th and 5th anniversary of the grant date.
On February 13, 2019, the Executive Compensation Committee of Sonoco's Board of Directors approved the following equity awards for Mrs. Albrecht under the Sonoco Products Company 2014 Long-Term Incentive Plan, in anticipation of her assuming the responsibilities of the Company's Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective March 1, 2019:
| Stock-Settled Stock Appreciation Rights | Restricted Stock Units | Performance Contingent Restricted Stock Unit Awards | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Threshold | Target | Maximum | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 24,097 | 3,473 | 3,569 | 7,138 | 14,276 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Information regarding the grant features and other provisions of the above equity awards are provided in the Company's Form 8-K filed on February 19, 2019, which is incorporated herein by reference.
In addition, Mrs. Albrecht participates in the Company’s performance-based annual cash incentive plan, long-term equity incentive plan, nonqualified deferred compensation plan for corporate officers, defined contribution supplemental executive retirement plan, and executive life insurance program, all of which are described under “Executive Compensation” in the Company’s proxy statement for the 2018 Annual Meeting of Shareholders filed March 16, 2018, and will also be described under “Executive Compensation” in the Company’s proxy statement for the 2019 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which is expected to be filed on or about March 18, 2019, which information is incorporated herein by reference.
Section 8 – Other Events
Item 8.01 Other Events.
For additional information regarding the foregoing, please see the Registrant’s news release dated March 1, 2019, announcing that Julie C. Albrecht has assumed responsibilities as the Company's Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
Section 9 - Financial Statements and Exhibits
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
99 Registrant's news release dated March 1, 2019, announcing that Julie C. Albrecht has assumed responsibilities
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Date: March 1, 2019 | By: | /s/ Julie C. Albrecht | ||||||||||||||||||
| Julie C. Albrecht | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||||||||||||||||||||
EXHIBIT 99
March 1, 2019
| Contact: Roger Schrum | ||||||||||||||
| +843-339-6018 | ||||||||||||||
| roger.schrum@sonoco.com | ||||||||||||||
Albrecht Becomes Chief Financial Officer of Sonoco
Cummings Named Corporate Treasurer
HARTSVILLE, S.C., U.S. – Sonoco (NYSE: SON), one of the largest diversified global packaging companies, today announced that Julie Albrecht has assumed responsibilities as the Company’s Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective today. Albrecht was named the Company’s CFO-elect in December 2018, and is replacing Barry Saunders, Senior Vice President and most recent CFO, who is retiring on April 1.
Albrecht reports to Rob Tiede, President and Chief Executive Officer, and is a member of the Company’s Executive Committee.
“We’re proud of our strong financial position, and trust Julie to continue building on our 120-year foundation,” Tiede said. “During her time at Sonoco, she has been instrumental in driving significant improvement in cash flow, while handling the financing for several strategic acquisitions totaling approximately $700 million.”
Albrecht, 51, joined Sonoco in 2017 and has served as Vice President, Treasurer and Assistant CFO, responsible for the Company’s treasury, tax and risk management functions. During that time, she managed the Company’s relationships with credit rating agencies and commercial banks, and has been responsible for investment and risk management of the Company’s retirement benefit plans. Before joining Sonoco, she held senior finance roles for several public companies. A photo of Albrecht can be found here.
In addition, Albrecht announced that Harold (Hal) G. Cummings, III, has been promoted to Staff Vice President, Corporate Treasurer, reporting to her, effective today. Previously, Cummings was Staff Vice President, Business Unit Finance, and in total he has 26 years of service to Sonoco working in a variety of financial planning and accounting roles. He is a member of Sonoco’s Management Committee.
“Hal’s broad experience across our Consumer and Industrial businesses and his strong financial acumen give him a solid background for his new position on our finance team,” said Albrecht.
About Sonoco
Founded in 1899, Sonoco (NYSE: SON) is a global provider of a variety of consumer packaging, industrial products, protective packaging, and displays and packaging supply chain services. With annualized net sales of approximately $5.4 billion, the Company has 23,000 employees working in approximately 300 operations in 36 countries, serving some of the world’s best known brands in some 85 nations. Sonoco is committed to creating sustainable products, services and programs for our customers, employees and communities that support our corporate purpose of Better Packaging. Better Life. The Company ranked first in the Packaging sector on Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies for 2019. For more information, visit www.sonoco.com.
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1 North Second Street
Hartsville, S.C. 29550 USA
843/383-7794
www.sonoco.com