Dow Inc. DOW exited the second quarter with solid liquidity of about $14 billion, including roughly $4 billion in cash and cash equivalents. Dow generated $1.3 billion of cash from operating activities in the quarter.
DOW’s strong balance sheet and substantial cash flows support capital allocation, enabling it to finance its growth investments in higher-value businesses and regions and drive shareholder value while navigating a challenging macroeconomic environment. It remains focused on growth actions in attractive end markets and executing high-return incremental growth projects in cost-advantaged regions, leveraging strong financial health.
Dow returned $1.5 billion to its shareholders through dividends in 2025. In the second quarter of 2026, the company returned $253 million to its shareholders through dividends. Dow has a long-term strategy of returning roughly 65% of its operating net income through dividends and buybacks. It has no substantial long-term debt maturities until 2029.
Looking across the competitive landscape, LyondellBasell Industries N.V. LYB ended the second quarter with $2.6 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $7.1 billion of available liquidity, providing solid financial flexibility. The company returned $224 million to its shareholders through dividends in the second quarter. As of the second quarter, LyondellBasell generated $3 billion of cash from operating activities over the last 12 months, while cash conversion was 80%, in line with its through-cycle target.
Eastman Chemical Company EMN ended the second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $691 million. Eastman Chemical operating cash flow was $224 million in the second quarter. EMN returned $96 million to its stockholders through dividends in the quarter.
The Zacks Rundown for DOW
Shares of Dow have gained 24.6% in the past year compared with the Zacks Chemicals Diversified industry’s decline of 2.2%.
DOW is currently trading at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 0.48, below the industry. It carries a Value Score of A.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DOW’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies a year-over-year rise of 355.3% and a decline of 32.8%, respectively. The EPS estimates for 2026 and 2027 have been trending lower over the past 60 days.
DOW stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).