Dow Chemical's first-quarter results showed demand was recovering in line with our outlook for the cadence of the year. Volumes rose 1% versus the prior-year quarter, following inventory destocking that weighed on 2023 results. In 2024, we think Dow will generate higher profits from a favorable price-to-cost spread and improved volumes, which will allow the company to run its plants at a higher capacity utilization.
Dow Chemical benefits from its cost-advantaged North American operations that use low-cost natural gas-based feedstock.
The vast majority of Dow’s products are commodities whose prices move with Brent oil prices. As Brent oil prices fall, Dow’s realized prices and profits will fall accordingly.
|
Metric
|
DOW
|
BASFY
|
AKE
|
|---|---|---|---|
Price/Earnings (Normalized) | 25.81 | 20.74 | 16.28 |
Price/Book Value | 2.19 | 1.25 | 1.09 |
Price/Sales | 0.93 | 0.66 | 0.75 |
Price/Cash Flow | 9.08 | 8.08 | 6.47 |
|
Metric
|
DOW
|
BASFY
|
AKE
|
|---|---|---|---|
Quick Ratio | 0.96 | 1.23 | 1.74 |
Current Ratio | 1.77 | 2.09 | 2.34 |
Interest Coverage | 1.57 | 1.74 | 25.08 |
|
Metric
|
DOW
|
BASFY
|
AKE
|
|---|---|---|---|
Return on Assets (Normalized) | 2.72% | 1.18% | 4.72% |
Return on Equity (Normalized) | 8.09% | 2.55% | 9.95% |
Return on Invested Capital (Normalized) | 5.47% | 2.29% | 6.09% |
|
Ticker
|
Name
|
Morningstar Rating for Stocks
|
Capital Allocation
|
Economic Moat
|
Market Cap
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SHECY
| Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd DR | — | Mrw | $81.1 Bil | |
SHECF
| Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd | — | Rmrhsc | $75.7 Bil | |
BFFAF
| Basf SE | — | Ydrddq | $46.7 Bil | |
BASFY
| Basf SE ADR | Gcpgfsxn | Hzzrg | $46.7 Bil | |
CE
| Celanese Corp Class A | Whnpydfs | Sklgllv | $17.2 Bil | |
TYNPF
| Nippon Sanso Holdings Corp | — | Dfv | $12.6 Bil | |
SHBBF
| Syensqo SA | — | Rzwz | $9.8 Bil | |
AHKSF
| Asahi Kasei Corp | — | Xrk | $9.6 Bil | |
AHKSY
| Asahi Kasei Corp ADR | — | Dlnr | $9.5 Bil |
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