Westlake reports Q1 EPS (77c), consensus (24c)

Reports Q1 revenue $2.65B, consensus $2.78B. “The Q1 began to reflect our cost reduction initiatives announced in 2025. Late in the Q1 we began to see margin improvement in the PEM segment as a result of the Iranian conflict. Our HIP segment saw gains in Pipe and Fittings sales volumes driven by continued strength in infrastructure spending, which was more than offset by the subdued North American residential construction activity and lower average sales prices,” said Jean-Marc Gilson, President and CEO. “Since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in March, PVC resin and polyethylene sales prices have risen significantly, driven by a steepening of the global cost curve as a result of sharply higher global feedstock and energy prices. At the same time, North American natural gas costs have declined from earlier-year levels due to more favorable weather conditions. While the duration and severity of the impact on global feedstock and energy markets from supply chain disruptions remain uncertain, we expect these factors to provide a meaningful benefit to PEM’s margins through at least the summer of 2026. We expect HIP sales volume to be supported by continued infrastructure spending, including strong demand from new data centers, although interest rates and increased building costs are likely to keep home affordability as a headwind to sales volume growth. Finally, in addition to the pricing and margin benefits of a steeper global cost curve, we anticipate further earnings improvement in the coming quarters as we continue to execute against our three-pillar profitability improvement plan,” Gilson concluded.