Celanese tops Q3 profit estimates, raises free cash flow forecast
Celanese earned $1.65 per adjusted share, topping the $1.61 estimate compiled by Finnhub, and raised its 2026 free cash flow forecast to $750 million to $800 million.
Key takeaways
- Celanese (CE) reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.65 per share, up 23% from a year earlier and topped the $1.61 consensus estimate compiled by Finnhub. The company raised its 2026 free cash flow forecast to $750 million to $800 million and expects full-year adjusted EPS of $6.00 to $6.25.
Celanese said on Nov. 2 that third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings were $1.65 per share, up 23% from a year earlier, and that it generated $461 million of free cash flow in the quarter.
The per-share figure topped the $1.61 consensus estimate compiled by Finnhub.
Here's how the company did:
- Adjusted EPS: $1.65 per share vs. $1.61 expected
- Free cash flow: $461 million
- Adjusted EBIT, Engineered Materials: $209 million
- Adjusted EBIT, Acetyl Chain: $236 million
President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Richardson said the results "reflect disciplined execution across the company, the benefits of our productivity actions, early contributions from our strategic growth initiatives, and the resilience of our differentiated businesses."
2026 guidance
The company raised its full-year 2026 free cash flow guidance to $750 million to $800 million, up from its earlier outlook of the same metric.
For the fourth quarter, Celanese expects adjusted EBIT of $170 million to $190 million for Engineered Materials and $200 million to $230 million for Acetyl Chain.
Richardson said the company anticipates full-year 2026 adjusted earnings per share of approximately $6.00 to $6.25.
Segment results
Engineered Materials generated adjusted EBIT of $209 million, at a margin of 15%. Medical net sales rose 16% year over year and electronics net sales rose 30%, the company said.
Acetyl Chain delivered adjusted EBIT of $236 million, an increase of over 25% from the third quarter of 2025. Its net sales rose 14% over the same period.
Cash and debt
Celanese had $1.4 billion in cash and an undrawn $1.75 billion revolving credit facility at the end of the quarter.
Net debt to operating EBITDA was 4.9 times at quarter-end. The company expects it to be about 4.7 times at the end of 2026.
The company said it expects to close the sale of an additional 19% interest in its Nutrinova joint venture to Mitsui in the coming weeks, for cash proceeds of about $152 million.
Richardson said, "We believe the actions we are taking today position Celanese to return to a level of performance consistent with top-quartile value creation over time."