Dow Inc. (NYSE:DOW) will take part in a fireside chat at the 2026 Wells Fargo 16th Annual Industrials & Materials Conference on Tuesday at 9:45 a.m. ET, with Chief Financial Officer Jeff Tate speaking for the company.
In presentation materials released ahead of the session, Dow reported that quarter-to-date volumes in the second quarter are up in the low single digits compared with prior years. The company said supply tightening is bringing stabilization to European markets and improving margins for local producers.
The slides highlighted market dynamics supporting margins across several product lines. The oil-to-gas spread remains at multi-year highs while global oil inventories sit at multi-year lows, and the Americas feedstock cost advantage continues to hold, the company said. Against that backdrop, polyethylene packaging demand is holding up, U.S. retail spending is described as strong, and coatings demand is beginning to rise as the seasonal high-demand period approaches.
Dow noted that global auto sales continue to fall, attributing the weakness to elevated vehicle prices and broad economic uncertainty. Within its North American operations, the company captured a $0.30-per-pound polyethylene price increase in April and announced another increase in June. Approximately 80% of sales in the Packaging & Specialty Plastics segment are in what Dow classifies as resilient, higher-value applications.
Following industry outages, the company reported that supply of MDI and PO has tightened in North America, and order loading is strong relative to prior periods. Management indicated expectations for both growth and margin expansion during the seasonal coatings demand window. Separately, Dow said the planned shutdown of siloxanes operations in Barry, U.K. remains on track for mid-2026.
"We expect to deliver 2Q26 earnings of approximately $2.2 billion, above our prior guidance and current consensus," management stated in the presentation.
On the balance sheet and cash-flow side, Dow reported roughly $14 billion of liquidity available and noted that it has no substantive debt maturities until 2029. The company received $1.0 billion from NOVA litigation proceeds in the first quarter of 2026 and expects about $300 million more in NOVA-related cash this year.
Dow outlined anticipated self-help benefits totaling roughly $1.1 billion in 2026. That figure includes about $500 million stemming from its 2025 cost-savings program, approximately $500 million from the Transform to Outperform initiative, and roughly $100 million from prior growth investments and asset actions. The company also stated workforce plans: it reported about 37,000 employees at year-end 2024 and said it is targeting approximately 29,000 employees by year-end 2027 through previously announced programs.
The presentation materials and the scheduled appearance by the CFO provide investors with a near-term operating and financial update directly from management ahead of full quarterly reporting.
Conference appearance: Jeff Tate to speak at Wells Fargo Industrials & Materials Conference, Tuesday 9:45 a.m. ET.
Earnings outlook: Management expects roughly $2.2 billion in 2Q26 earnings, above prior guidance and consensus.