MIDLAND — Dow Corning Corp. announced a 10 percent increase in net income in 2015, despite a nine percent decrease in sales resulting from a strong U.S. dollar.
For the year, Dow Corning reported $5.65 billion of sales, down from $6.22 billion in 2014, and $563 million of net income, up from $513 million a year earlier.
For the fourth quarter, sales were $1.47 billion, down 12 percent from $1.68 billion a year earlier. Dow Corning’s fourth quarter net income was $193 million, more than four times the figure of $37 million recorded a year earlier.
Dow Corning’s adjusted net income in 2015 was $492 million, a decrease of 6 percent compared to 2014. Adjusted net income for 2015 excluded the impact of a derivative contract and gains resulting from the sale of property, long-term sales agreements and a breast implant liability adjustment.
The company said it continued to increase sales in its most profitable specialty silicones product lines with notable strength in the high performance building, packaging, electronics, and health and beauty care industries.
Also, the company said, sales from Dow Corning’s polysilicon segment continued to decrease as the timing of customers taking product under long-term contracts resulted in fewer shipments.
“Dow Corning’s efforts to increase the profitability of our silicones business in 2015 enabled us to offset the currency headwinds we faced as well as the continued volatility in our Polysilicon business,” said Dow Corning executive vice president and CFO J. Donald Sheets. “We see a tremendous opportunity to accelerate growth in our Silicones business upon completion of the Dow Chemical and Corning Inc. transaction.”
Dow Corning provides more than 7,000 products and services to more than 25,000 customers worldwide. Dow is a 50-50 joint venture of Midland-based Dow Chemical Co. and New York-based Corning Inc. More at www.dowcorning.com.
Dow Corning’s Hemlock Semiconductor Group is comprised of several joint venture companies majority owned by Dow Corning. It provides polycrystalline silicon and other silicon-based products used in manufacturing semiconductor devices and solar cells and modules. More at www.hscpoly.com.