Germany’s Lanxess lifted the lower end of its earnings guidance range for 2017 after strong demand for specialty chemicals such as construction pigments and leather chemicals outweighed a weaker pesticide ingredients business.
Lanxess – which makes synthetic rubber, engineering plastics and leather-tanning and water treatment chemicals – said it now expected 2017 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of between EUR 1.25 billion and EUR 1.3 billion (£1.12 billion to £1.17 billion).
It had previously put the lower end of that range at EUR 1.225 billion.
The shares were seen 0.8 % lower in pre-market trade at brokerage Lang & Schwarz after earlier being indicated 2.9 % higher.
Third-quarter adjusted EBITDA rose 35 % to EUR 347 million, Lanxess said on Wednesday, also boosted by the recent takeover of U.S. peer Chemtura and ahead of the average analyst expectation for 341 million in a Reuters poll.
Lanxess also said it acquired Solvay’s U.S. phosphorus additives business with about EUR 65 million in sales, without disclosing financial terms.