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Here's Why You Should Hold DuPont Stock in Your Portfolio for Now
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Key Takeaways
DuPont's healthcare, water, aerospace and EV exposure supported 4% organic sales growth in Q2.
Spectrum Plastics and Donatelle Plastics acquisitions strengthen DuPont's healthcare exposure and innovation.
DuPont targets $90 million in 2026 pricing to offset higher input costs and limit margin pressure.
DuPont de Nemours, Inc. (DD - Free Report) benefits from its innovation-driven investment, productivity actions and acquisitions amid uneven construction demand and persistent cost pressure.
DD’s shares are down 45.6% in the past year compared to the Zacks Chemicals Diversified industry’s 3.3% decline.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Let’s find out why DD stock is worth retaining at the moment.
Productivity, Innovation & Acquisitions Aid DD Stock
DuPont remains focused on organic growth through innovation, commercial execution and targeted acquisitions. Its innovation-driven investment is focused on several high-growth areas. DD's portfolio is exposed to healthcare, water, aerospace and electric vehicle (EV) applications, which supported 4% organic sales growth in second-quarter 2026. The company is expanding its innovation pipeline through direct lithium extraction solutions in Water, Liveo products for biopharma and new solutions for electric vehicles and battery energy storage.
The acquisition of Spectrum Plastics Group, a leading manufacturer of specialty medical devices and components, strengthened DuPont’s position in stable and fast-growing healthcare end markets. It is also in sync with its focus on high-growth, customer-driven innovation for the healthcare market. The buyout of Donatelle Plastics also enhances DD’s exposure in healthcare, expanding its expertise in the medical device market segments.
DD said in August 2026 that it still had more than $1 billion available for potential mergers and acquisitions and was evaluating opportunities in water and healthcare. It also indicated that prospective acquisitions should add to the company’s growth algorithm and meet disciplined return thresholds. These actions support a more focused portfolio while retaining flexibility for selective growth investments and shareholder returns.
DuPont is also benefiting from cost synergy savings and productivity improvement actions. Its operating system is producing measurable cost and execution gains. In second-quarter 2026, net productivity improved and contributed to operating leverage. Management is targeting net productivity equal to 3% of cost of goods sold and expects to reach that run rate within about 18 months from August 2026. The 80/20 program is also moving from pilot work to implementation across four Diversified Industrials businesses, with a few million dollars of EBITDA benefit expected in second-half 2026. Full-year 2026 operating EBITDA guidance of $1.75-$1.77 billion implies continued benefits from organic growth and productivity.
Construction and Cost Headwinds Weigh On DuPont
DuPont’s Building Technologies business remains exposed to a mixed construction backdrop. Organic sales rose in the low single digits in the second quarter as residential and non-residential demand improved, led by Asia Pacific, but management said single-family housing remained soft.
DD expects Building Technologies sales to increase only slightly for full-year 2026, indicating that the broader recovery remains limited. The company also noted that residential performance was above its underlying market in second-quarter 2026, which may make sustained growth more dependent on favorable market mix and end-market stabilization. This leaves Diversified Industrials exposed to uneven construction conditions even as aerospace and EV applications provide offsets.
Higher oil and gas-related input costs remain a margin drag in 2026 even though DuPont expects pricing to offset the dollar impact. Management said about $90 million of pricing is planned for full-year 2026, with most of it in the second half. Price-cost dynamics reduced second-quarter 2026 operating EBITDA margin by 30 basis points. The company expects a 50-basis-point margin drag in second-half 2026 and a 30-basis-point drag for the full year.
Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Reliance, Inc. (RS - Free Report) , Innospec Inc. (IOSP - Free Report) and Avient Corporation (AVNT - Free Report) .
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RS’ 2026 earnings is pegged at $22.53 per share, indicating a 58% year-over-year increase. The consensus estimate for RS’s 2026 earnings has moved up 30.8% over the past 60 days.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for IOSP’s current-year earnings is pegged at $5.03 per share, implying a 4.55% year-over-year decrease. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 12.9%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVNT’s current-year earnings is pinned at $3.2 per share, indicating a 13.48% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 3.4%.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Here's Why You Should Hold DuPont Stock in Your Portfolio for Now
Key Takeaways
DuPont de Nemours, Inc. (DD - Free Report) benefits from its innovation-driven investment, productivity actions and acquisitions amid uneven construction demand and persistent cost pressure.
DD’s shares are down 45.6% in the past year compared to the Zacks Chemicals Diversified industry’s 3.3% decline.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Let’s find out why DD stock is worth retaining at the moment.
Productivity, Innovation & Acquisitions Aid DD Stock
DuPont remains focused on organic growth through innovation, commercial execution and targeted acquisitions. Its innovation-driven investment is focused on several high-growth areas. DD's portfolio is exposed to healthcare, water, aerospace and electric vehicle (EV) applications, which supported 4% organic sales growth in second-quarter 2026. The company is expanding its innovation pipeline through direct lithium extraction solutions in Water, Liveo products for biopharma and new solutions for electric vehicles and battery energy storage.
The acquisition of Spectrum Plastics Group, a leading manufacturer of specialty medical devices and components, strengthened DuPont’s position in stable and fast-growing healthcare end markets. It is also in sync with its focus on high-growth, customer-driven innovation for the healthcare market. The buyout of Donatelle Plastics also enhances DD’s exposure in healthcare, expanding its expertise in the medical device market segments.
DD said in August 2026 that it still had more than $1 billion available for potential mergers and acquisitions and was evaluating opportunities in water and healthcare. It also indicated that prospective acquisitions should add to the company’s growth algorithm and meet disciplined return thresholds. These actions support a more focused portfolio while retaining flexibility for selective growth investments and shareholder returns.
DuPont is also benefiting from cost synergy savings and productivity improvement actions. Its operating system is producing measurable cost and execution gains. In second-quarter 2026, net productivity improved and contributed to operating leverage. Management is targeting net productivity equal to 3% of cost of goods sold and expects to reach that run rate within about 18 months from August 2026. The 80/20 program is also moving from pilot work to implementation across four Diversified Industrials businesses, with a few million dollars of EBITDA benefit expected in second-half 2026. Full-year 2026 operating EBITDA guidance of $1.75-$1.77 billion implies continued benefits from organic growth and productivity.
Construction and Cost Headwinds Weigh On DuPont
DuPont’s Building Technologies business remains exposed to a mixed construction backdrop. Organic sales rose in the low single digits in the second quarter as residential and non-residential demand improved, led by Asia Pacific, but management said single-family housing remained soft.
DD expects Building Technologies sales to increase only slightly for full-year 2026, indicating that the broader recovery remains limited. The company also noted that residential performance was above its underlying market in second-quarter 2026, which may make sustained growth more dependent on favorable market mix and end-market stabilization. This leaves Diversified Industrials exposed to uneven construction conditions even as aerospace and EV applications provide offsets.
Higher oil and gas-related input costs remain a margin drag in 2026 even though DuPont expects pricing to offset the dollar impact. Management said about $90 million of pricing is planned for full-year 2026, with most of it in the second half. Price-cost dynamics reduced second-quarter 2026 operating EBITDA margin by 30 basis points. The company expects a 50-basis-point margin drag in second-half 2026 and a 30-basis-point drag for the full year.
DuPont de Nemours, Inc. Price and Consensus
DuPont de Nemours, Inc. price-consensus-chart | DuPont de Nemours, Inc. Quote
DD’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks
DD currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Reliance, Inc. (RS - Free Report) , Innospec Inc. (IOSP - Free Report) and Avient Corporation (AVNT - Free Report) .
While RS currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), IOSP and AVNT carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RS’ 2026 earnings is pegged at $22.53 per share, indicating a 58% year-over-year increase. The consensus estimate for RS’s 2026 earnings has moved up 30.8% over the past 60 days.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for IOSP’s current-year earnings is pegged at $5.03 per share, implying a 4.55% year-over-year decrease. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 12.9%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AVNT’s current-year earnings is pinned at $3.2 per share, indicating a 13.48% year-over-year increase. Its earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 3.4%.