Earnings Call Intelligence Subscribe
Home › Call Sheets › DD › Q3'26
Call sheet · Q3'26

DuPont de Nemours (DD)

Q3'26 earnings call · held November 3, 2026 · compared with the Q2'26 call · management-credibility review
7/12
Disclosure score
1 high, 4 medium, 3 low flags
Financial quality
Bottom line
The sleeper story here isn't the beat-and-raise, it's that DuPont's prized AI commercial engine produced the identical $5-6 million dollar figure two quarters running while the one KPI that would prove it's actually working (win rate, opportunity count) quietly disappeared from the deck. The obvious headline, 5% organic growth and a raised guide, is real, but a good chunk of it is oil & gas surcharge pricing that grew from $90M to $110M and continued capital return including another $250M Q4 buyback, not a broad volume inflection across a portfolio where roughly 40% is still shrinking. The binding constraint right now isn't demand, it's visibility: management told analysts to wait for 2027 color 'on the next call' even while opening the call with 'we will enter 2027 with confidence', and the Middle East water projects have now slipped a third consecutive quarter, from 'most hits Q4' to 'pushed into 2027'. My view changes if DD re-discloses a win-rate/opportunity-count metric next quarter showing real acceleration beyond the flat $5-6M AI figure, or if they give even a directional 2027 range instead of another deferral.

The 30-second version

  • The AI commercial 'engine' is flatlining, not scaling
  • Beat-and-raise again, but the raise is increasingly surcharge and buyback funded
  • Middle East 'timing issue' just became a third consecutive quarterly slip, and 2027 color is being stonewalled

What changed this quarter

MetricQ2'26Q3'26Change
Net sales$1.8B, +4% (4% organic)$1.9B, +4% (5% organic)Organic accel +100bps
Adjusted EPS$1.88, +21% YoY$2.09, +31% YoYGrowth rate accelerating, partly capital-allocation driven
Operating EBITDA$448M, +8%$469M, +8%Same growth rate, higher base
Operating EBITDA margin24.6%, +80bps YoY25.1%, +90bps YoY+10bps better expansion
Healthcare & Water sales$856M, +5% (4% organic)$865M, +4% (4% organic)Organic flat, reported growth decelerated
HC&W EBITDA margin30.1%, -30bps YoY30.4%, +80bps YoYSwung from contraction to expansion
Diversified Industrials sales$963M, +3% organic$1.0B, +4% (5% organic)+200bps organic acceleration
DI EBITDA margin22.1%, +70bps YoY24.1%, +140bps YoYDoubling of margin expansion rate, mix-driven
Free cash flow$326M, 127% conversion$341M, 121% conversionDollar growth, conversion rate ticked down
FY FCF conversion guide'Ahead of 90%' target'Approximately 100%'Guide raised, still pending (FY not over)

Accountability tracked

4 new promises made5 narrative shifts flagged7 prior promises scored
Inside the full report
The complete write-up covers the full promise ledger with kept/missed calls, disclosure-quality scoring, the metrics-vanished check, verification items, and the questions to ask next quarter.
Read the full DD Q3'26 report Subscribe
About Research ↗Call SheetsCredibility IndexMissed PromisesScreens13F BooksData & InstitutionalPrivacyTermsSubscribe
This is a free preview. The full write-up and promise ledger are published to subscribers on Substack.
Scores, kept-promise rates, and flags on this site reflect the author's opinion, applying a stated methodology to statements management made on public earnings calls. Informational and educational purposes only - not investment advice, a recommendation, or an offer to buy or sell any security. Sources believed reliable but not guaranteed; the author may hold positions in the securities discussed.

Follow what management promises next

Get free previews of our earnings-call research: the key changes, management scores, and questions worth investigating. Subscribe for full call sheets and deeper analysis.

Subscriptions are managed by Substack. If the form does not load, subscribe directly. Or follow the RSS feed.