Yahoo Finance Celanese (CE) Surpasses Earnings and Sales Estimates in Q2
Celanese Corporation CE logged earnings from continuing operations of $4.81 per share in second-quarter 2021, up from 93 cents in the year-ago quarter.
Barring one-time items, adjusted earnings were $5.02 per share, up from $1.30 in the year-ago quarter. The figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.49.
Revenues of $2,198 million increased 84.2% year over year and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,903.7 million.
Celanese Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Celanese Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Celanese Corporation Quote
Segment Review
Net sales in the Engineered Materials unit were $682 million in the second quarter, up 62.4% year over year. The segment witnessed record net sales in the quarter on the back of pricing increase. The uptick was driven by pricing initiatives in the wake of raw-material inflation and improved mix. Volumes were stable compared with the last quarter and the business offset a sequential decline in global auto builds amid semiconductor supply shortages.
The Acetyl Chain segment posted net sales of $1,409 million, up 112.8% year over year. The segment witnessed sequential increase in prices and volume. Pricing increased 27% sequentially primarily due to higher acetic acid pricing in China amid tightened industry utilization. Volume rose 7% sequentially driven by availability of incremental Acetyl Chain production capacity and strong demand across most end-markets and regions.
Net sales in the Acetate Tow segment were $138 million, up 8.7% year over year. The company witnessed stable pricing and sequential volume increase in the segment. The upside can be attributed to timing of customer orders, which were delayed in the prior quarter due to winter storm Uri.
Financials
Celanese ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1,054 million, up 95.5% year over year. Long-term debt rose 5.6% year over year to $3,156 million.
Celanese generated operating cash flow of $427 million and free cash flow of $309 million in the second quarter. Capital expenditures amounted to $110 million.
The company also returned $326 million to shareholders through dividend payouts and share repurchases during the second quarter.
Outlook
Celanese stated that it is investing in future growth through organic opportunities within its businesses, disciplined M&A like the Santoprene buyout, and share buybacks. It forecasts that continued moderation in the Acetyl Chain industry pricing as the year progresses will be partly offset by strong demand fundamentals across its businesses and modest continued sequential earnings momentum in Engineered Materials.
The company expects third-quarter adjusted earnings in the range of of $4.5-$4.75 per share and full-year adjusted earnings of $16.50-$17 per share.
Price Performance
Celanese’s shares have gained 61% in the past year against 18.5% decline of the industry.
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Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks
Celanese currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Some other top-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Nucor Corporation NUE, Dow Inc. DOW and Cabot Corporation CBT.
Nucor has a projected earnings growth rate of around 447.6% for the current year. The company’s shares have surged 119% in a year. It currently flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Dow has an expected earnings growth rate of around 359.6% for the current year. The company’s shares have gained 42% in the past year. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.
Cabot has an expected earnings growth rate of around 137.5% for the current fiscal. The company’s shares have surged 35.4% in the past year. It currently flaunts a Zacks Rank #1.
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