DuPont lifted its full-year profit forecasts on Tuesday and projected current-quarter earnings above Wall Street estimates after a third-quarter performance boost from strong healthcare, aerospace and industrial water markets demand. Shares of the industrial materials maker rose 7.6 per cent in morning trading. The global chemicals industry has been grappling with persistent overcapacity and uneven demand in key end markets. DuPont, however, has benefited from capital deployment initiatives including the spinoff of its electronics business, debt reduction and share repurchases as well as price increases to offset higher feedstock and energy costs. Its third-quarter results showed it was able to offset higher costs through price increases while expanding margins, Morningstar analyst Seth Goldstein said, and the market is reacting to management’s strong outlook. The company raised its 2026 adjusted core profit outlook to nearly $1.79 billion from its previous forecast range of $1.75 billion-$1.77 billion. It expects annual adjusted earnings of $7.47-$7.52 per share, compared with $7.17-$7.32 per share previously. DuPont expected full-year results to come in at or above the high end of its prior guidance, CFO Antonella Franzen said. It concluded a $250 million accelerated share repurchase program and substantially completed $100 million of open-market share repurchases during the third quarter, DuPont said. The company plans to repurchase an additional $250 million of shares in the fourth quarter. The pace of future share buybacks would depend on the timing of potential mergers and acquisitions, DuPont executives said in an earnings call. Net sales at its healthcare and water technologies segment rose nearly 4 per cent to $865 million from a year earlier, while sales at its diversified industrials segment increased 4.2 per cent to more than $1 billion. Large water projects in the Middle East are now expected to be pushed into 2027 due to ongoing disruptions, company executives said. Wilmington, Delaware-based DuPont forecast fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.90-$1.95 per share, above analysts’ average estimate of $1.87 apiece, according to data compiled by LSEG. It reported adjusted profit of $2.09 per share for the third quarter, topping analysts’ estimate of $1.87 per share. -- (Reporting by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
