Honeywell Profit Tops Estimates on Aerospace, Energy Rebound

(Bloomberg) -- Honeywell International Inc.’s profit topped analyst estimates as the company’s aerospace and energy businesses started to recover from the pandemic-induced slump, adding to robust growth from factory-automation and building-safety products. The company raised its profit and sales outlook.

Adjusted second-quarter earnings rose to $2.02 a share, soaring from $1.26 last year when airlines slashed services and oil prices dropped as people stopped traveling to stem the spread of Covid-19. Analysts had expected a profit of $1.94, according to the average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales jumped 18% to $8.81 billion, while Wall Street projected $8.65 billion.

“Our strong performance in the second quarter took place in a recovering but challenging global environment,” Honeywell Chief Executive Officer Darius Adamczyk said in a statement. “We are especially pleased to see a turnaround in several of our key end markets that were hardest hit by the pandemic.”

The higher-than-expected sales gain at aerospace and energy, Honeywell’s largest two businesses, led the company to raise its profit outlook for 2021. The two operations were hit hardest by the pandemic. The safety-products and warehouse-automation units and the division that sells systems to make buildings more efficient continued to lead sales growth.

The company increased its profit forecast for this year to between $7.95 and $8.10 a share from $7.75 to $8. The company now expects sales to be as much as $35.2 billion, up from $34.8 billion. Organic sales, which exclude acquisitions, divestitures and currency fluctuations, are expected to rise as much as 6%, up from the previous outlook of 5%.

Honeywell’s shares fell 1.6% to $229.13 at 9:45 a.m. in New York. The shares had increased 9.2% this year through July 22, trailing a 16% gain for the S&P 500 Index.

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