Good morning, everyone.
Good morning.
On behalf of the Board of Directors and Sonoco's Management, welcome to Sonoco's 2023 Shareholders Meeting. I'm John Haley, Chairman of Sonoco's Board. Before we get started, I'd like to thank Coker University for allowing us to use this wonderful facility for our meeting as our traditional venue is undergoing a renovation this year. In addition to shareholders here with us in Hartsville, we're joined by listeners around the world via sonoco.com. Let me begin today's meeting by introducing the members of our board of directors. I would ask that you all please hold your applause until they've been all introduced. First, we'd like to welcome our newly appointed board member, Steven Boyd. Steven is Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte. Prior to retirement, held many leadership roles at various consumer products companies. Howard Coker.
Howard is Sonoco's President and Chief Executive Officer. You'll hear more from Howard on the state of Sonoco in a few minutes. Dr. Pamela Davies. Dr. Davies is President Emerita and Professor of Strategy at Queens University of Charlotte. Teresa Drew. Teresa was Managing Partner of the Carolinas practice of Deloitte, a global accounting and professional services firm, until her retirement in 2019. She resides in Charlotte. Philippe Guillemot. Philippe is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Vallourec, a world leader in premium tubular solutions for energy markets based in Meudon, France. I've had the privilege of serving as Board Chairman since 2019, and when I'm not working with our board, I'm Chief Executive of Gosiger Incorporated, a national distributor of machine tools and factory automation systems based in Dayton, Ohio. Our lead independent director is Robert Hill.
Robert is Executive Chairman of South State Corporation, a regional banking company based in Columbia, South Carolina, with operations throughout the Southeast. Eleni Istavridis. Eleni was Executive Vice President and Head of Investment Services for Asia at Bank of New York Mellon, a global commercial banking company, until her retirement. She resides in McLean, Virginia. Rich Kyle. Rich is President and CEO of The Timken Company, a global manufacturer of bearings, transmissions, gearboxes, motors, and lubrication systems based in North Canton, Ohio. Blythe McGarvie. Blythe is a podcast host and speaker on various corporate governance topics with the Buffett Institute of Global Affairs. She previously taught at accounting at Harvard Business School's MBA program. Blythe resides in Evanston, Illinois. Finally, Tom Whiddon. Tom was an Advisory Director of Berkshire Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm, and is retired Executive Vice President of Lowe's Companies.
Tom resides in Belleair, Florida. Let me also recognize several of our other retired directors who are with us today. First, Charlie Coker. Charlie served on the board from 1961 to 2005, including serving as chairman from 1976 to 2005. Harris DeLoach. Harris served on the board from 1998 to 2019, including serving as chairman from 2005 to 2013, and executive chairman from 2013 to 2019. Jack Sanders. Jack served as CEO and director from 2013 to 2018. Edgar Lawton. Edgar was a board member for 32 years, from 1968 to 2000. Jack Linville. Jack was a board member from 2004 through 2017. Finally, Caleb Fort.
Caleb was a director from 2001 to 2011. Our current board of directors works very hard representing shareholder interests, and our retired directors continue to actively support your company. Please give them all a warm welcome. All right. I'll now call the business meeting to order and advise you that the annual report for 2022, the notice of annual shareholders meeting, the proxy statement, and proxy were mailed on or about March 17th, 2023 to shareholders of record as of February 22nd, 2023, notifying each of the annual meeting to be held today. Approximately 98 million shares of our common stock were outstanding and entitled to vote, and each share of common stock has one vote. We've appointed Elizabeth Kramer of Sonoco and Mark Zimkind of Continental Stock Transfer and Trust Company as inspectors of election to tabulate the ballots.
Will you please stand and be recognized? Thank you. Are there any shareholders wishing a ballot? If so, please raise your hand, and we will see that you receive one. Okay. Our bylaws provide that the presence in person or by proxy of a majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote constitutes a quorum. Before we go further, let me introduce our Corporate Secretary, John Florence, who also serves as Sonoco's General Counsel and Vice President, General Manager for converted paper products in the U.S. and Canada. Mr. Secretary, will you please advise if a quorum is present?
Mr. Chairman, I'm advised by the inspectors of election that there have been delivered to the transfer agent prior to the meeting proxies executed by holders of more than 90% of the outstanding shares entitled to vote. Therefore, a quorum is present.
Thank you, John. The annual meeting Sonoco Products Company is duly convened, and we're ready to consider the matters of business. Mr. Florence has the minutes of last year's meeting. In the interest of expediency, I would entertain a motion to dispense with John's reading of the minutes so that we may move on with the rest of the business portion of the meeting. Is there a motion?
Mr. Chairman, I move to approve the minutes of the 2022 annual meeting.
Thank you, Ashley. A second?
I second.
Thank you, Rhett. If anyone wishes to inspect the minutes following the meeting, John will have them available. Our next item of business involves proposals and resolutions to come before shareholders. For a shareholder proposal to come before this meeting, it must have been submitted to the secretary of the company in writing before February third of this year. It must comply with the requirements of our bylaws. Today, we have four proposals or resolutions for consideration and one individual shareholder proposal. Starting with the first item, your board of directors recommends the election of the following directors for a one-year term expiring at our next annual meeting in 2024. They include Steven L. Boyd, R. Howard Coker, Dr. Pamela L. Davies, Teresa J. Drew, John R. Haley, Philippe Guillemot, Robert R. Hill, Jr., Eleni Istavridis, Richard G. Kyle, Blythe J. McGarvie, and Thomas E. Whiddon.
I've been advised by the secretary that there were no other nominations submitted. Do I have a motion? Thank you, Peggy. A second?
Mr. Chairman, I second the motion.
Thank you, Lynn. Our second item is the ratification of the selection of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31st, 2023. Do I have a motion?
Mr. Chairman, I move to ratify PricewaterhouseCoopers as the independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31st, 2023.
Thank you, Marcy. A second?
Mr. Chairman, I second.
Thank you, Scott. The third item is a resolution requiring shareholders to provide advisory, non-binding approval of compensation of the named executive officers described in the proxy. Do I have a motion?
Mr. Chairman, I move to approve the advisory shareholder resolution on executive compensation.
Thank you, Mark. A second?
Mr. Chairman, I second that motion.
Thank you, Christie. The fourth item involves an advisory vote on the frequency of advisory votes on executive compensation. There are choices ranging from one to three years, and the frequency receiving the most votes will be approved. Your board recommends annual advisory votes. Do I have a motion?
Mr. Chairman, one-year advisory I move to approve the one-year advisory vote on executive compensation.
Thank you, Roger. A second?
Mr. Chairman, I second the motion.
Thank you, Elizabeth. Now, the final item is an advisory, non-binding shareholder proposal entitled Special Shareholder Meeting Improvement, which is outlined in the proxy. Your board of directors has carefully considered this proposal, including conducting engagements with many of our largest shareholders. For reasons explained in the proxy, we do not believe the proposal is in the best interest of the company or its shareholders. Accordingly, the board has recommended a vote against this proposal. Do any parties wish to speak for or against the resolution?
Yes. Proposal number five, special shareholder meeting improvement. Shareholders, ask the board of directors to take the steps necessary to amend the appropriate company's governing documents to give the owners a combined 10% of our outstanding common stock. This power to call a special shareholders meeting. This includes each shareholder shall have an equal right per share to formally participate in the calling for a special shareholder meeting. Sonoco shareholders gave 70% support for the same proposal at the time for 2020 Sonoco Annual Meeting. The Sonoco board watered down what the Sonoco shareholders voted for. Instead of 10% that the shareholders voted for, it was upped it to 15%, and then all shares not owned for less than one continuous year were excluded.
A 10% figure to call a special shareholder meeting is reasonable because of the laws of some states mandate that 10% of shares be able to call a special shareholders meeting. Another sign that 10% of the shares is reasonable is that some companies that have the higher than 10% figure then allow 10% figure to apply to one shareholder who owns 10% of shares. Calling for a special shareholder meeting is hardly ever used by a shareholder, but the main point of the right to call for a special shareholders meeting is that it gives the shareholders the least significant standing to engage effectively with management. Sonoco management will have an incentive to genuinely engage with shareholders instead of stonewalling if the shareholders seeking engagement with management, and will have the realistic Plan B option to call a special shareholders meeting.
Contrary to the management statement next to this proposal, at least a majority vote is required a special shareholder meeting. Thus, the shareholders calling for a special shareholders meeting will have no extra influence as a special shareholder meet unless they own 51% of Sonoco shares. Please vote yes. Special shareholders meeting improvement, proposal number five.
Thank you for your comments. We will consider those comments as the official motion and second. Mr. Secretary, would you please report on the preliminary tabulation by the inspectors of the voting on the resolutions presented to this meeting?
Mr. Chairman, the inspectors of election have reported that shareholders have voted to elect all nominees for director and have voted by a majority to ratify the selection of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31st, 2023. Shareholders approved the advisory resolution on executive compensation, as well as the one-year frequency for advisory resolutions on executive compensation. Finally, shareholders voted overwhelmingly against the non-binding proposal regarding special shareholder meeting improvements.
Thank you, John. This concludes the business portion of our annual meeting. I'd now like to turn the meeting over to Howard Coker, President and CEO, to provide an update on the state of the company. Howard, the floor is yours.
Okay. Well, thank you, John. Good morning, everyone. I am thrilled to have all of you with us today. For those of you here in person and those listening on the webcast, I'm truly excited to share with you the great things that are happening at Sonoco. Before I go further, let me remind you, today's presentation contains a number of forward-looking statements based on current expectations, estimates, and projections. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties. Therefore, actual results may vary materially. Further information about these forward-looking statements and our use of non-GAAP financial measures is available in the investor relations sections of the company's website at sonoco.com. I wanna begin our discussion with today's key messages. First, Sonoco is a global leader in higher value, sustainable packaging.
We are continuing to transform this great company through portfolio management and strategic M&A. We have increasing opportunity to leverage our operating model to expand margins. We remain disciplined in capital allocation and expect to further invest to grow. Lastly, and importantly, we are committed to improving the lives of our team members, our customers, and the communities in which we live and work. When people ask me to describe the company and what we do, I tell them, "If you have a product that requires a package that is hard to make, that no one says can be produced sustainably or an application where the cost of failure is high, then come to Sonoco." We are proud of our industry-leading and innovative lineup of high-value, sustainable products. Our company today operates in more than 300 facilities in 32 countries with over 22,000 employees.
In 2022, sales of $7.3 billion were 82% in the Americas, with Europe and Asia rounding out the remaining 18%. To give you a little bit of background, I've been part of Sonoco literally for my entire life, but about 38 of those years as an employee of the company. I jokingly say there is no job here that I haven't done. In February of 2020, I had the greatest privilege of my career to become the President and CEO of this great company. Shortly after that, and against significant turmoil in the world, this leadership team set a new course for this business, and those discussions started something like this: What if? Why can't we? Wouldn't it be great? Should we? Can you only imagine?
We opened our aperture for the longer term to examine who we wanted to become. The art of the possible began to take shape. We put intense rigor around a set of conditions and actions that we knew could make a step change in profitability of the company. Our journey began. We first had to look at our portfolio. Over time, we had become a complicated business that was difficult to resource, standardize, and scale. We looked at the business from the lens of where we believe we have a true right to win and gain leadership positions. As a result, we are intentionally aligning to fewer, bigger businesses to focus on the portfolio. The outcome of these efforts has been to exit from less profitable businesses and operations and invest in others.
While there's more work to be done, today, we are organized in two integrated segments. The first is consumer, which represents 52% of our sales. We provide customers with a variety of food and household packaging, including our rigid paper containers, metal packaging, and plastic products, both rigid and flexible. The second is our industrial segment, which represents 37% of our sales. We provide high-grade paper products and converted production for tubes, cores, cones, and protective packaging, in addition to our recycling operations. Our all other businesses at 11% are more unique packaging solutions and smaller operating divisions that are run more independently with an entrepreneurial spirit. In parallel, we are realigning our organizational structure, talent, and footprint to support these larger core integrated businesses. Again, while there's more work to be done, we are pleased with our simplification and realignment efforts to date.
We're also investing to grow our core capabilities. Through Project Horizon and across our packaging substrates and products, we're using a rigorous financial process to allocate capital to those projects with the highest returns. In 2022, we spent a record $320 million of CapEx and expect to invest a similar amount this year. We're also investing in the knowledge that we gain through our own recycling centers to design more sustainable products for customers across the portfolio. We continue to invest to grow our core inorganically. Early in 2022, we expanded our legacy metal manufacturing capabilities with an acquisition in the staple food and aerosol markets. In the fourth quarter of 2022, we closed on our acquisition of Skjern Paper in Denmark to meet the growing demand for sustainable consumer packaging in Europe.
Both the metal packaging and Skjern acquisitions are progressing well ahead of expectations. Additionally, in Q4 of 2022, we announced the intent to purchase the remaining equity interest of RTS Packaging and one paper mill from WestRock. This deal supports our paper business with increased exposure to growing food and beverage markets. Each of these transactions are right down the fairway in our core markets, and we have paid reasonable valuations and expect to generate healthy returns from all of these investments. We're also investing in operating excellence for greater efficiency. One of the most impactful recent investment has been in our commercial excellence programs. We've worked hard to reposition pricing to less volatile indices while improving the timing of recovery for higher manufacturing costs. Additionally, we've realigned contracts with an emphasis on value pricing reflective of the complex solutions we offer through our sustainable and innovative products.
Across our operations, from equipment upgrades and automation investments to strategic sourcing and inventory management, we are streamlining operations with a backbone of process standardization for lower costs and operating expenses. Our focused operational strategy is centered on serving our customers in the right location with maximum efficiency to drive superior service and quality. Sonoco is built on a foundation of strong ESG. For over 120 years, we have been committed to the highest ethical standards and integrity and have worked proactively to make a positive and meaningful impact in the world. Many of our programs go back 30 years and are about doing the right thing by our people and the environment. As we work to meet our responsibilities, we recognize our goals must be corporate commitments within all levels of the organization.
Across all our businesses, we're building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce through a set of focused actions to promote and hire the best talent in a highly competitive labor market. We have great leadership teams throughout Sonoco to maintain our culture while hiring and developing a fantastic workforce for the future. Since our last update, we have renewed ambitious 2030 commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy usage. The science-based targets align with the Paris Climate Agreement, which seeks to limit global warming temperatures well below -2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. We also remain focused on diversity and inclusion in the workplace. At present, women make up 32% of new hires, and one-third of our workforce today is a racial or ethnic minority.
I am very pleased with the team's positive momentum towards our future goals, and I'm equally proud of the recognition they have received for their hard work. We will be releasing our updated corporate responsibility report in the second quarter, which highlights progress to these targets. To further illuminate our 2022 initiatives, we have prepared a short video summary of our accomplishments. Let's take a quick look.
Since 1899, the simple fact has been that our people build businesses. In 2022, our people helped deliver one of Sonoco's most successful years on record. We focused on investing in ourselves with further focus on our portfolio, operational execution, sustainability, while delivering world-class results and prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion. Why? Because we believe our greatest opportunity for growth is in concentrating on our core businesses, taking care of our planet, and focusing on the people who make it all work. Our impressive results in 2022 proved this approach. Product innovations increased opportunities for us to reuse and recycle with accolades for our raw materials, design, production, research, and on-pack labeling claims. Capital investments in global acquisitions integrated core businesses and expanded our capacity for production and sustainable paper and packaging solutions to various industries and stakeholders.
We championed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to deliver outstanding customer and employee experiences at every level and at every touch point. This starts with support, forums, and opportunities to put forward solutions. We're looking to the future with confidence. The results Sonoco achieved in 2022 will pave the way for continued success. We'll continue winning by listening to our customers' needs and investing in ourselves. Positioned as an innovative and experienced partner, we're committed to doing the right thing by our customers, our employees, our shareholders, and our communities. Our people-first accountability culture sets Sonoco up for long-term profitable growth. In 2023 and beyond, we're excited to see the results our dedicated team will deliver.
I was waiting for a great round of applause there. That is to this great team. Again, I do want to thank the employees of Sonoco for their continued dedication to delivering on all the initiatives that we have undertaken. This execution framework to drive profitability and growth was set almost three years ago and has begun to positively impact our performance. Let's take time and cover a few financial results. Revenue for the year was $7.25 billion, a 30% YoY increase, which was a record in the history of Sonoco. Base operating profit was $920 million, a 63% YoY increase, a record in the history of Sonoco. Base earnings per share of $6.48, a 65% YoY increase, again, a record in the history of Sonoco.
In 2022, we exceeded expectations while remaining centered on our core values that we live day in and day out, and our enduring belief that people build businesses by doing the right things. We plan to reinvest in our core businesses to drive continued organic growth and productivity. In 2023, we expect that investment to be roughly $350 million. As part of our portfolio strategy, we will pursue strategic acquisitions with reasonable valuations, healthy returns. Our emphasis will be focused on our core and integrated businesses. We will maintain a conservative balance sheet with a focus on delivering as appropriate while maintaining our investment-grade credit rating. We will plan to return cash to our shareholders with a growing dividend.
To provide a little more color, I am pleased to announce your board of directors approved a 4% increase in quarterly dividends, with shareholders now receiving $0.51 per share. Which will be paid on June 9th, 2023, to shareholders of record as of May 10th of this year. Sonoco has paid dividends for 392 consecutive quarters, dating back to 1925, and we have increased annual dividends for 39 consecutive years. Our annualized dividend at $2.40 per share provides approximately a 3.4% yield to our current stock price, which is well above the average dividend yield for the S&P 500 and among the highest as compared to our packaging peers. 2022 was a year of great progress, there is still more to come. Our base earnings per share clearly shows a step change in profitability.
We earned $6.48 per share in 2022. If you adjust for the one-time material benefits, it would have been approximately $6 per share, certainly still a record. Since 2020, the high return investments we've made while reshaping the portfolio and improving the operating model have resulted in an expected 15% CAGR and base earnings per share through 2023, based on the midpoint of our current guidance. We're continuing to grow and increase in strategic value within the industry. We see the demand for global, technologically superior and sustainable packaging continuing to grow. I wanna end our discussion as we look ahead to 2023 and beyond. First, Sonoco is a global leader in higher value, sustainable packaging. We are continuing to transform this great company through portfolio management and strategic M&A.
We have increasing opportunity to leverage our operating model to expand margins. We remain disciplined in capital allocation and expect to further invest to grow. Lastly and importantly, we're committed to improving the lives of our team members, our customers, and the communities in which we live and work. In closing, I've been with Sonoco, believe it or not, for almost 40 years, and I have never been more excited to be a part of this great company. We are making step change improvements in efficiencies and how we think about the business that is yielding improved financial performance. I'm optimistic about the actions we're taking to make Sonoco an even better company, and to the value we will create for all of our stakeholders in 2023 and beyond. Now, I'd be glad to handle any questions that any of you may have.
Seeing none, let me say thank you for being with us today and for entrusting us with your investments. I want to personally thank our 22,000 teammates, our customers, the communities we serve, and you, our shareholders, for your support of our great company as we continue this incredible journey together. With that, Mr. Chairman, I move we adjourn the 2023 meeting of shareholders. We are adjourned.