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Honeywell (HON) Beats on Q1 Earnings, Raises FY23 Guidance

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Honeywell International Inc.’s (HON - Free Report) first-quarter 2023 earnings of $2.07 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.93. This compares with our estimate for adjusted earnings per share of $1.92. The bottom line improved 8.4% year over year.

Total revenues of $8,864 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $8492.6 million. Our estimate for total revenues in the first quarter stood at $8483.7 million. The top line increased 6% from the year-ago quarter. Organic sales increased 8% due to growth in Honeywell Building Technologies, Performance Materials and Technologies and Aerospace segments.

Segmental Details

Aerospace’s quarterly revenues were $3,111 million, up 13% year over year. Higher commercial aviation aftermarket sales due to continued flight hour recovery in air transport drove the segment’s performance.


Honeywell Building Technologies’ revenues increased 4% to $1,487 million, owing to growth in building solutions and strong demand for fire offerings. Our estimate for segmental revenues was $1,489.9 million.

Performance Materials and Technologies’ revenues totaled $2,749 million, up 12%. Our estimate for Performance Materials and Technologies revenues in the first quarter was $2,504.2 million. Segmental revenues were driven by strong organic growth in the UOP business and robust demand for fluorine products.

Safety and Productivity Solutions revenues decreased 13% to $1,515 million due to lower volumes in warehouse and workflow solutions and productivity solutions and services. Our estimate for the segment’s revenues was $1,691.4 million.

Costs/Margins

The company’s total cost of sales (cost of products and services) in the reported quarter was $5,498 million, up 3.3% year over year. Selling, general and administrative expenses were $1,317 million, down approximately 8%. Interest expenses and other financial charges were $170 million compared with $85 million a year ago.

Operating income in the first quarter was $1,692 million, up 33.1% year over year. The operating income margin was 19.1% compared with 15.2% in the year-ago period.

Balance Sheet/Cash Flow

Exiting the first quarter, Honeywell, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), had cash and cash equivalents of $6,869 million compared with $9,627 million at the end of December 2022. Long-term debt was $14,670 million, lower than $15,123 million at the end of 2022.

In first-quarter 2023, HON used net cash of $784 million in operating activities compared with $36 million cash generated in the year-ago period. Capital expenditure totaled $193 million in the first quarter compared with $183 million incurred in the year-ago period.

Free cash flow was negative $977 million in the first quarter compared with a positive $50 million in the year-ago period.

2023 Outlook Improved

For 2023, Honeywell expects sales of $36.5-$37.3 billion compared with $36-$37 billion anticipated earlier. The mid-point of the guided range — $36.9 billion — lies above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $36.64 billion.

The company expects organic sales growth of 3-6% in the year compared with 2-5% estimated earlier. Segmental margin is anticipated to be 22.3-22.6%, indicating a year-over-year rise of 60-90 basis points (an increase of 50-90 basis points was anticipated earlier).

Honeywell expects adjusted earnings per share of $9-9.25, suggesting a year-over-year rise of 3-6% (an increase of 0-5% was predicted earlier). The mid-point of the guided range — $9.13 — lies above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.03. Operating cash flow is still expected to be $4.9-$5.3 billion for 2023, while free cash flow is anticipated to be $3.9-$4.3 billion.

Performance of Some Other Conglomerates

General Electric Company (GE - Free Report) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), reported first-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings of 27 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 13 cents. The bottom line increased 12.5% year over year. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks.

General Electric’s total revenues of $14,486 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13,395 million. The top line increased 14.3% year over year.

Danaher Corporation (DHR - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), reported first-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings (excluding 42 cents from non-recurring items) of $2.36 per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.26. The bottom line decreased 14.5% year over year with a decline in sales.

Danaher’s net sales of $7,167 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7,028.5 million. However, it declined 7% year over year due to a decrease in the sale of COVID-related products.

3M Company (MMM - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #3, reported first-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings (excluding 21 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.97 per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.60. The bottom line declined in double digits year over year due to the exit of the company’s Russia operations and a 3.4 percentage point headwind from the decline in disposable respirator demand.

3M’s net sales of $8,031 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7,635 million. However, the top line declined 9% year over year due to an adverse foreign currency impact of 2.8% and a 1.3% negative impact from divestitures. Organic sales fell 4.9%.

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