Celanese

Celanese (CE) Q1 2025 Earnings

Reported May 5, 2025 at 5:06 PM ET · SEC Source

Q1 25 EPS

$0.57

BEAT +47.82%

Est. $0.39

Q1 25 Revenue

$2.39B

BEAT +5.54%

Est. $2.26B

vs S&P Since Q1 25

-38.3%

TRAILING MARKET

CE -4.8% vs S&P +33.5%

Market Reaction

Did CE Beat Earnings? Q1 2025 Results

Celanese delivered a stronger-than-expected first quarter, posting adjusted EPS of $0.57 against a consensus estimate of $0.39, a beat of 47.82%, even as the specialty chemicals company continued to navigate a choppy demand environment across automot… Read more Celanese delivered a stronger-than-expected first quarter, posting adjusted EPS of $0.57 against a consensus estimate of $0.39, a beat of 47.82%, even as the specialty chemicals company continued to navigate a choppy demand environment across automotive, paints, and construction markets. Revenue came in at $2.39 billion, topping estimates by 5.54%, though the figure still represented an 8.5% decline year-over-year as softer volumes and modest pricing pressure weighed on results. The primary driver of the earnings outperformance was favorable mix within Engineered Materials, where stronger-than-anticipated medical implant grade sales and productivity-related cost reductions helped offset broader demand weakness. Celanese also completed roughly $2.60 billion in registered note offerings during the quarter, improving its near-term debt maturity profile as it pursues deleveraging against net debt of $11.83 billion. Looking ahead, management guided Q2 adjusted EPS of $1.30 to $1.50, anticipating tailwinds from a resuming Chinese partner dividend, normalizing acetate tow orders, and modest automotive volume recovery, while targeting full-year free cash flow of $700 to $800 million.

Key Takeaways

  • Favorable mix in Engineered Materials from stronger medical implant grade sales
  • Productivity gains lowering costs in Engineered Materials
  • 2% sequential volume increase at the total company level
  • Delayed Chinese partner dividend payment shifted to Q2 due to change in Chinese law
  • Higher energy costs in Acetyl Chain
  • Greater than anticipated delays in acetate tow order timing
24/7 Wall St

CE YoY Financials

Q1 2025 vs Q1 2024, source: SEC Filings

24/7 Wall St

CE Revenue by Segment

With YoY comparisons, source: SEC Filings

Q1 25 Q1 26

“Our end-markets in the first quarter exhibited dynamics similar to the fourth quarter, and demand in our businesses developed mostly as we expected. While tariffs are a constant topic, we saw no direct impact in the first quarter. No matter how the demand environment develops over the remainder of the year, our mission is unchanged. We intend to continue driving productivity and earnings growth through execution of our three key priorities, and are taking aggressive actions to generate cash, reduce costs, and drive growth through our two differentiated business models.”

— Scott Richardson, Q1 2025 Earnings Press Release