Market news
, 4 July 2021
195
<h3><b>First Quarter 2018 Highlights</b></h3>
<ul type="disc">
<li>Net Sales of $1.7 billion, up 20</li>
<li>Net Income of $297 million, up 98% with EPS of $1.58, up 100</li>
<li>Adjusted Net Income of $266 million, up 103% with Adjusted EPS of $1.41, up 101</li>
<li>Adjusted EBITDA of $468 million, up 64</li>
<li>Completed first acquisition of ICOR International in April 2018</li>
<li>Repurchased approximately $400 million shares since December 1, 2017</li>
</ul>
<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-8199" src="https://refindustry.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/logo-412x350.jpg" alt="" width="412" height="350" />
Chemours President and CEO Mark Vergnano said, "Last year's momentum has continued into 2018. We are delivering improved business performance across the company driven by preference for our Ti-Pure titanium dioxide, continued Opteon refrigerant adoption, and increased demand for our fluoropolymers products. Complementing this impressive organic growth, I am pleased to announce the completion of our first acquisition," Vergnano continued."Our first targeted acquisition bolsters our refrigerant portfolio and broadens our channel access across our markets as we continue to expand our low GWP Opteon portfolio. At the same time, we continued to execute on our balanced capital allocation strategy, repurchasing a total of approximately $400 million of shares since inception, further demonstrating our confidence in our future growth.
<b>Fluoroproducts
</b>Fluoroproducts segment sales in the first quarter were $732 million, a 12 percent increase in comparison to the prior-year quarter. Opteon refrigerant sales growth and continued demand for fluoropolymers drove volume increases versus last year's first quarter. Price impact was negligible versus last year's first quarter primarily due to mix, while favorable currency exposure resulted in a benefit versus the prior-year quarter. Segment Adjusted EBITDA was $206 million, a 33 percent improvement versus the prior-year quarter.This was a result of increased sales growth and better plant utilization modestly offset by higher distribution expenses, water treatment costs and increased raw material costs.
<b>Outlook
</b>Vergnano remarked, "Given our strong first quarter results and visibility into the rest of 2018, we are reiterating our expectation that earnings will be at the high end of our previously announced range. We have modified the corresponding Adjusted EPS range to reflect our lower share count. We also expect to deliver over $700 million Free Cash Flow in 2018. Our anticipated 2018 performance is indicative of the high returns we believe Chemours can deliver over the next three-years."
