Stock Earnings Round Up (NYSE: WLK, DD)

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Westlake Chemical Corporation (NYSE:WLK) said Tuesday that its third-quarter net income rose 8.8% to $29.8 million, or 45 cents a share, from $27.4 million, or 42 cents a share, a year earlier. The group said revenue fell 41% to $632.6 million, but its cost of sales declined faster, shrinking 44% to $560 million. The group said its earnings also benefited by around 4 cents a share from a lower effective tax rate. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 20 cents a share. Westlake said revenue was higher compared to the second quarter, due to higher prices for most of its major products.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company (NYSE:DD) said Tuesday it expects to earn between $2.10 to $2.40 a share next year, compared to the Wall Street consensus of $2.24 a share, as provided by FactSet Research. For 2009, the Wilmington, Del., chemical giant reaffirmed its guidance of $1.80 to $1.90 a share, or $1.95 to $2.05 a share, on an adjusted basis. Analysts predicted full-year earnings of $2.01 a share, on average. DuPont said it expects to generate about 10% top-line compound annual growth for the 2009 to 2012 period. It also plans to cut fixed costs by $1 billion and capture about $1 billion in working capital productivity gains during the same time frame, helping the company achieve, on average, EPS growth of 20%.