- Q4 sales and earnings beat estimates
- Fiscal 2025 seen above consensus
- Spin-off of electronics unit confirmed
Shares in technology-based materials group DuPont de Nemours (DD:NYSE) leapt 7% overnight after fourth-quarter earnings topped Wall Street estimates reflecting a strong performance in electronics, driven by demand for AI applications.
The shares scaled a new month-high of $81.48, taking 12-month gains to 19%, just shy of the 21% advance in the benchmark S&P 500 index.
A fast-growing market for semiconductors used in artificial intelligence is providing a tailwind for DuPont’s advanced chip manufacturing, packaging and assembly processes.
WHAT DID THE COMPANY SAY?
Chief executive Lori Loch commented: ‘DuPont closed out a year of strong financial performance with solid fourth-quarter results as we saw continued strength in electronics end-markets and a return to year-over-year top-line growth in Water & Protection driven by further improvement in water and medical packaging end-markets.’
‘Our team's ongoing focus on operational execution and cost discipline throughout 2024 delivered 100 basis points of margin expansion with 17% adjusted EPS (earnings per share) growth for the full year, along with strong cash generation and related cash conversion of 105%.’
Net sales for the quarter increased 7% to $3.09 billion, ahead of analysts’ estimates of $3.05 billion, while adjusted EPS (earnings per share) excluding one-off items jumped 30% to $1.13, smashing consensus estimates of $0.93 per share.
Looking ahead to the first quarter the company is projecting adjusted EPS of $0.95 on sales of $3 billion, surpassing Street estimates of $0.79 and $2.9 billion respectively.
Fiscal 2025 adjusted EPS are expected to be between $4.3 and $4.4, slightly above the mid-point of the consensus range.
ELECTRONICS SPIN-OFF CONFIRMED
DuPont confirmed plans to spin-off its electronics division by 1 November 2025, which will leave the group centred around its ‘high growth’ Water and Healthcare businesses and ‘market-leading’ industrial product lines.
Previously the company had planned to split into three publicly traded units.
