CE Celanese Corp

MIXED Impact: 6/10 8-K
Horizon weeks Filed May 5, 2026 Processed 1mo ago SEC 0001306830-26-000091
8-K Item 2.02: Earnings release
Latest settled — T+20d
CE ▼ -10.59% at T+20d
NEUTRAL call ✗ call lost -10.59% · α vs SPY -13.37% · entry $62.05 → $55.48
Next anchor: T+60d in 7w
Currently $53.48 · -13.81% from $62.05 entry
Entry anchored
May 5, 2026
via day open
T+1d
-5.91%
call -5.91% · α -5.58%
$58.38
settled 5w ago
T+5d
-4.16%
call -4.16% · α -5.29%
$59.47
settled 5w ago
T+20d
-10.59%
call -10.59% · α -13.37%
$55.48
settled 10d ago
T+60d
—
call — · α —
—
in 7w

Price Chart

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Executive Summary

Celanese reported Q1 2026 adjusted EPS of $0.85, essentially in line with $0.84 consensus, on net sales of $2.34B (in line with $2.35B). Revenue fell 2.2% YoY, but operating margins expanded 230bps to 12%. The key catalyst is a strong Q2 adjusted EPS guide of $2.00-$2.40, implying a massive sequential ramp, and the company raised its full-year free cash flow outlook to $700-$800M.

Key Financial Metrics

Free Cash Flow
$3.0M
Gross Margin
20.03%

Actionable Insight

The Q2 guidance implies a sharp earnings inflection; watch for confirmation of sequential volume and pricing trends in the Acetyl Chain and Engineered Materials. The raised FCF outlook supports deleveraging, but historical calibration suggests tempered market reaction to Celanese guidance beats.

Key Facts

  • Q1 adjusted EPS $0.85 vs consensus $0.84 (in line)
  • Q1 net sales $2.34B vs consensus $2.35B (in line)
  • Revenue down 2.2% YoY to $2.34B
  • Adjusted EBIT margin expanded to 11.8% from 9.7% YoY
  • Q2 adjusted EPS guidance $2.00-$2.40 (significant sequential improvement)
  • Full-year free cash flow outlook raised to $700-$800M
  • Net debt to operating EBITDA target ~4.8x
  • Operating cash flow $76M, free cash flow $3M in Q1

Financial Impact

Q2 adjusted EPS guided to $2.00-$2.40, up from Q1 $0.85; FY FCF guided to $700-$800M vs prior $600-$700M

revenueepsfree cash flowmargins

Risk Factors

  • Revenue continued to decline YoY, signaling demand weakness in key end markets
  • Guidance relies on anticipated volume and price improvements, which may not materialize
  • High leverage (net debt/EBITDA ~4.8x target still elevated)

Market Snapshot

Exchange
NYSE
Sector
Plastic Material, Synth Resin/Rubber, Cellulos (No Glass)
Analyst Consensus
62% bullish (26 analysts)

Documents Analyzed

This report is based on 7 SEC documents filed with EDGAR.

DocumentAccession Number
8-K Filing (Primary)0001306830-26-000091
Document: q120268-kex991.htm0001306830-26-000091
Document: ce-20260505.htm0001306830-26-000091
Document: 0001306830-26-000091-index-headers.html0001306830-26-000091
Document: 0001306830-26-000091-index.html0001306830-26-000091
Document: 0001306830-26-000091.txt0001306830-26-000091
8-K Data (Synthetic)0001306830-26-000091
3 reports for CE
Performance horizon
Filters
Rows
Reports for CE — sortable, filterable
Type Now
Jun 10, 2026
3d ago
8-K
NEUTRAL ★ 2/10
$50.91 awaiting T+20awaiting T+20—$53.48 (+5.05%)
May 5, 2026
5w ago
8-K
MIXED ★ 6/10
$62.05 $55.48▼ −10.59%▼ −13.37%$53.48 (−13.81%)
Apr 20, 2026
7w ago
8-K
NEUTRAL ★ 3/10
$65.30 $55.75▼ −14.62%▼ −19.54%$53.48 (−18.10%)
Showing 3 of 3

US Market Status

Market Closed — Opens Mon (47h 22m)

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