8-KRegulation FD

EMERSON ELECTRIC CO 8-K Report, Regulation FD Disclosure (Sep 22, 2016)

Filed September 22, 2016For Securities:EMR

Summary

Emerson Electric Co. (EMR) filed an 8-K on September 22, 2016, providing an update on its orders growth for the trailing three months ending August 2016. The report indicates a company-wide orders decrease of 2.5 percent compared to the prior year, driven by persistent challenges in the energy and general industrial markets, particularly impacting the Process Management and Industrial Automation segments. Despite the overall decline, the company noted signs of stabilization in order trends and highlighted positive growth in the Network Power and Climate Technologies segments, benefiting from increased spending in data centers, telecommunications infrastructure, and HVAC/refrigeration markets. Management commentary suggests that muted operational and capital spending levels, especially from oil and gas customers, are expected to continue into 2017. While Process Management faces ongoing headwinds due to low oil prices, Industrial Automation is also affected by weak industrial spending. Conversely, Network Power's growth is attributed to favorable data center and telecommunications investments, and Climate Technologies is seeing improvements in HVAC and refrigeration demand, particularly in Asia and North America. The company also noted the impact of currency translation, which added approximately 2 percent to total orders.

Key Highlights

  • 1Total Emerson orders decreased by 2.5% for the trailing three months ending August 2016 compared to the prior year.
  • 2Difficult market conditions in energy and general industrial sectors continue to pressure Process Management and Industrial Automation segments.
  • 3Network Power segment showed growth, driven by increased demand in data center and telecommunications infrastructure spending.
  • 4Climate Technologies segment experienced mid-single digit growth due to improved HVAC and refrigeration market demand.
  • 5Underlying orders declined by 4%, with currency translation adding approximately 2% to the total orders.
  • 6The company anticipates that subdued operational and capital spending in energy-related markets will persist into calendar year 2017.
  • 7Trend lines for monthly orders appear to be stabilizing despite ongoing market challenges.

Frequently Asked Questions

Emerson experienced a 2.5% decrease in total orders for the trailing three months ending August 2016 compared to the prior year. While this indicates a decline, the company noted that monthly order trends appear to be stabilizing, suggesting a potential easing of difficult market conditions.

The Network Power and Climate Technologies segments are performing well, showing growth driven by demand in data centers, telecommunications, HVAC, and refrigeration markets. Conversely, the Process Management and Industrial Automation segments are facing significant headwinds due to the ongoing challenges in the energy and general industrial markets, particularly related to oil price volatility and weak capital spending.

Emerson anticipates that reduced levels of both operational and capital spending in energy-related markets will likely continue into calendar year 2017. This outlook is influenced by continued market instability and low oil prices affecting customers in the oil and gas sector.

Currency translation had a positive impact on Emerson's reported orders, adding approximately 2 percentage points to the total orders for the trailing three-month period. The impact varied by segment, with Process Management seeing a 4 percentage point addition while Climate Technologies experienced a 1 percentage point deduction.