Ball Corporation (NYSE: BLL) is a manufacturer of metal and plastic packaging for beverages and foods.^[1] Most of Ball Corporation's customers are breweries and soft drink bottlers, which pay Ball to make aluminum soft drink and beer cans.^[2] The company sells 18 different beverage can sizes and helps its customers develop their own specialty cans^[3] - an example is a narrower 8.4oz can for Molson Cold Shots, which are currently sold in Canada.^[4]

Ball has captured 31% of the market for metal beverage cans in North America.^[5] It competes with companies like Amcor (AMCR), Rexam (REXMY), Crown Cork & Seal Company (CCK), and Silgan Holdings (SLGN) in the packaging and container market.^[6] Despite strong competition, Ball maintains a stable market position as contracts rarely change hands in the packaging and container industry. Because of this, Ball's revenues and operating income are often controlled by external factors such as the demand for packaged beverages like soft drinks and beer.^[7] The cost of raw materials such as aluminum also tends to effect Ball's operating income despite clauses in their contracts that allow them to pass increases in raw material cost on to the customer because the increase in the cost of Ball's finished product can result in lower sales.^[8]

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