Yahoo Finance Chemours (CC) Stock Up 25% in 6 Months: What's Driving It?
The Chemours Company’s CC shares have popped 25% over the past six months. The company has also outperformed its industry’s decline of 0.7% over the same time frame. It has also topped the S&P 500’s roughly 1.7% decline over the same period.
Let’s dive into the factors behind this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock’s price appreciation.
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What’s Favoring CC?
Forecast-topping earnings performance in the second quarter and upbeat prospects have contributed to the rally in the company's shares. Chemours’ adjusted earnings of $1.89 per share for the second quarter trounced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.42. Net sales rose around 16% year over year to $1,915 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,818.7 million. Prices contributed favorably to the top line growth in the quarter.
Chemours now sees adjusted EBITDA at the top end of its guidance range of $1.475-$1.575 billion for 2022. Free cash flow for 2022 is now forecast to be more than $600 million, up from more than $550 million it expected earlier.
Chemours is benefiting from a rebound in demand from the coronavirus-induced downturn, strong execution and its cost-reduction and pricing actions. The company is seeing demand revival across its end markets and regions on the global macroeconomic recovery.
The company’s Thermal & Specialized Solutions segment is benefiting from strong demand in refrigerants across most regions. It is also witnessing strong adoption of the Opteon platform, which is supporting volumes in this segment. Chemours remains committed toward driving Opteon adoption. Prices in the Titanium Technologies division are also being driven by strong demand for Ti-Pure pigment.
Chemours is also gaining from its efforts to reduce costs. Its cost-reduction program along with its productivity and operational improvement actions across its businesses are expected to support its margins in 2022. It is also taking appropriate pricing measures to counter higher costs partly due to supply chain issues and raw material inflation.
The company also remains focused on boosting its cash flows and returning value to shareholders. Its cash provided by operating activities was $291 million for the second quarter, up around 14% year over year. The company repurchased $128 million of common stock during the quarter, resulting in total share repurchases of $272 million in the first half of 2022.
The Chemours Company Price and Consensus
The Chemours Company price-consensus-chart | The Chemours Company Quote
Stocks to Consider
Other top-ranked stocks worth considering in the basic materials space include Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. SQM, Albemarle Corporation ALB and Daqo New Energy Corp. DQ.
Sociedad has a projected earnings growth rate of 513.7% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SQM’s current-year earnings has been revised 32.6% upward in the past 60 days.
Sociedad’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters, the average being 28.2%. SQM has rallied roughly 118% in a year. The company sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Albemarle has a projected earnings growth rate of 405.2% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB's current-year earnings has been revised 61.3% upward in the past 60 days.
Albemarle’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters. It has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of roughly 24.2%, on average. ALB has gained around 30% in a year and currently carries a Zacks Rank #1.
Daqo New Energy, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #1, has an expected earnings growth rate of 177.5% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DQ's earnings for the current fiscal has been revised 20.8% upward in the past 60 days.
Daqo New Energy’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters, the average being 10.8%. DQ has gained around 45% over a year.
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The Chemours Company (CC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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