Westlake reports lower-than-expected Q3 earnings as outages hit production

HOUSTON - Westlake Corporation (NYSE:WLK) reported lower third quarter earnings that missed analyst estimates, as extended maintenance outages impacted production and sales volumes.

WLK shares were trading flat premarket Tuesday following the announcement.

The chemical and building products maker posted adjusted earnings of $1.41 per share for the quarter, down from $2.20 per share a year ago and well below the $2.21 analysts were expecting. Revenue was relatively flat at $3.12 billion compared to $3.15 billion last year, but fell short of the $3.31 billion consensus estimate.

Westlake said its results were negatively impacted by extended maintenance outages at its ethylene joint venture facility and one of its chlorovinyl plants. This led to higher purchases of ethylene feedstock and lower production volumes.

"While we are disappointed with this operational performance, we have completed the maintenance and these plants have returned to service," said President and CEO Jean-Marc Gilson.

The company's Performance and Essential Materials segment saw income from operations fall to $66 million from $105 million last year, excluding a $75 million charge related to mothballing two units in Europe. The Housing and Infrastructure Products segment's income declined to $202 million from $256 million.

Westlake noted that global macroeconomic trends modestly improved from the second quarter, with relatively solid conditions in North America, continuing recovery in Asia, and slow improvement in Europe. However, the pace of recovery remains uneven across regions.

The company ended the quarter with $2.9 billion in cash and $4.6 billion in total debt. Westlake redeemed $300 million of maturing senior notes during the period.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

Source: Investing.com