Results included record first quarter Housing and Infrastructure Products (HIP) income from operations, and Performance & Essential Materials (PEM) sales volume growth.
First quarter 2024 net sales increased year-over-year. The growth within the company’s end-markets was driven by improvement in both refinish and light vehicles, offset partially by lower net sales in industrial and commercial vehicles.
The company was able to increase its sales volumes, in particular within the EMLA and APAC regions, with the former benefiting from higher plant availability. Due to lower average selling prices associated with lower raw material prices being passed on to customers, sales fell slightly.
According to the CEO, "Dow once again delivered top-quartile performance in our annual benchmarking on three-year average cash flow, margins, return on invested capital and shareholder remuneration."
Although sales are still down since the previous year, the good start into the year gives the company confidence that it can achieve its targets for the fiscal year.
The company recorded third-quarter net sales that were up 0.4% from the prior year. The company expects the next quarter consolidated sales to be approximately flat compared to prior-year record results.
"We delivered significant year-over-year cash flow improvement in 2023, including a strong fourth quarter finish, which underscores our ongoing prioritization of working capital management," said Ed Breen, DuPont Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
