When two large industrial companies merge into one, the market usually waits for proof that the merger has produced more than just bigger numbers on the front page of the annual report. The packaging industry has seen the largest transaction in the history of the industry in 2024, resulting in a company that has no comparably sized rival among listed packaging players - serving customers in more than 40 countries, operating more than 500 plants and with revenues in excess of $31 billion.

2025 was the first real test of whether this ambition works in practice. Our article breaks down why the company exceeded its binding synergy target and what that means for the outlook for margins and free cash flow, what valuation looks like when looking beyond the superficial P/E, and why the shift from plastics to paper is a structural driver that the market is not fully pricing in today, what the numbers say about the balance sheet, and how quickly the integration phase can turn into a period where…