Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) Q2 2026 Earnings: Adjusted EPS of $1.44 Beats Estimates as Revenue Jumps 19.7%

Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) reported Q2 2026 adjusted EPS of $1.44, beating the $1.29 consensus estimate by 11.6%, while net sales of $12.1 billion rose 19.7% year-over-year. GAAP EPS came in at $0.99, with the $0.45 per-share gap driven primarily by costs associated with the company's Transform to Outperform restructuring program, partially offset by an income tax adjustment tied to a payment from NOVA Chemicals.

Q2 2026 Results

• Net sales of $12.1 billion, up 19.7% from $10.1 billion in Q2 2025, with local price up 20% year-over-year and currency adding 1%, partially offset by a 1% volume decline.
• Adjusted operating EPS of $1.44, versus a loss of $0.42 in Q2 2025, and above the $1.29 analyst consensus.
• Operating EBIT of $1.648 billion, swinging from a loss of $21 million in the year-ago period, reflecting higher prices across all segments and benefits from self-help initiatives.
• GAAP net income of $802 million, compared to a GAAP net loss of $801 million in Q2 2025.
• Operating cash flow from continuing operations of $1.324 billion, reversing a cash outflow of $470 million in the prior-year period.

What Drove the Results

Adjusted EPS of $1.44 beat the $1.29 consensus by $0.15, or 11.6%. Revenue of $12.092 billion was in line with reported estimates of approximately $12.1 billion. The broad-based improvement was anchored in pricing: local prices rose 20% year-over-year, led by the Packaging and Specialty Plastics segment, where polyethylene prices increased sharply across all regions.

Packaging and Specialty Plastics, Dow's largest segment, posted net sales of $6.4 billion, up 27% year-over-year, with Operating EBIT of $1.278 billion compared to $71 million in Q2 2025. Industrial Intermediates and Infrastructure contributed net sales of $3.2 billion, up 14%, and swung to an Operating EBIT of $246 million from a loss of $185 million a year earlier. Performance Materials and Coatings grew net sales 11% to $2.4 billion, though Operating EBIT declined modestly to $133 million from $152 million, as higher fixed costs including turnaround activity and the in-period shutdown of the Barry, U.K., upstream siloxanes plant more than offset self-help benefits.

Volume decreased 1% overall. Gains in Performance Materials and Coatings were more than offset by declines in Packaging and Specialty Plastics, largely due to planned maintenance activity; within that segment, polyethylene volumes were also affected by the Middle East conflict.

Guidance and Self-Help Update

Dow raised its internal savings expectations for the full year, now anticipating approximately $200 million in additional benefits from the Transform to Outperform program in 2026. Total in-year self-help benefits are now expected to exceed $1.3 billion. CEO Karen S. Carter stated that the program's impact is expected to ramp significantly through the remainder of 2026 and into 2027, with the company prioritizing growth in high-demand end markets, portfolio investment, and balanced capital allocation.

Wall Street View

Ahead of results, Deutsche Bank indicated that U.S. chemicals companies were broadly expected to report quarterly results in line with expectations. Dow's adjusted EPS beat of 11.6% above consensus represents a meaningful outperformance relative to that framing. Analyst recommendations as of July 1, 2026, reflected a mixed but net-positive outlook, with no specific post-earnings price target revisions available in the source data.

Investor Takeaway

The quarter's key story is not just the EPS beat but the scale of the year-over-year earnings recovery: Operating EBIT moved from negative territory to $1.648 billion, and operating cash flow from continuing operations improved by $1.794 billion. Investors will likely focus on whether the polyethylene price environment that powered the Packaging and Specialty Plastics rebound proves durable, and whether the accelerated Transform to Outperform savings can sustain margin improvement even if commodity pricing moderates in the second half of 2026.