Honeywell announced results for the second quarter that met or exceeded the company's guidance. The company also raised its full-year organic growth and adjusted earnings per share guidance ranges and reiterated its free cash flow guidance range.
The company reported second-quarter year-over-year sales growth of 8% and organic1 sales growth of 5%, led by double-digit organic sales growth in defense and space and UOP. Operating income increased 7% and segment profit1 increased 8% to $2.4 billion led by growth in Building Automation. Operating margin contracted 30 basis points to 20.4% and segment margin contracted 10 basis points to 22.9%, meeting previous guidance. Earnings per share for the second quarter was $2.45, up 4% year over year, and adjusted earnings per share1 was $2.75, up 10% year over year. Operating cash flow was $1.3 billion, down 4% year over year, and free cash flow1 was $1.0 billion, down 9% year over year.
"Honeywell delivered outstanding results in the second quarter with both organic growth and adjusted earnings per share exceeding guidance despite the unpredictable macroeconomic backdrop," said Vimal Kapur, chairman and chief executive officer of Honeywell. "With Building Automation leading the way, three out of four segments grew sales at better than 5% in the quarter, demonstrating the power of our Accelerator operating system to adapt quickly and drive growth even as business conditions change. During the quarter, we also saw promising results from our increased focus on new product innovation, which further supported the growth of our record backlog. In parallel, we continued to take a balanced approach to capital deployment, including selectively pursuing attractive M&A opportunities, such as the bolt-on acquisition of Johnson Matthey's Catalyst Technologies business and the strategic tuck-in of Li-ion Tamer."
Kapur added, "With the announcement of our review of strategic alternatives for our Productivity Solutions and Services and Warehouse and Workflow Solutions businesses, this month also marked the conclusion of the in-depth portfolio review that I initiated early in my tenure as CEO to simplify and optimize Honeywell's businesses. As we prepare to separate into three industry-leading public companies, we are confident that our efforts to shape our portfolio have positioned Honeywell to deliver significant value for customers, employees, and shareholders."
As a result of the company's second-quarter performance and management's outlook for the remainder of the year, Honeywell updated its full-year sales, segment margin2, and adjusted earnings per share2,3 guidance. Full-year sales are now expected to be $40.8 billion to $41.3 billion with organic1 sales growth in the range of 4% to 5%. Segment margin2 is expected to be in the range of 23.0% to 23.2%, with segment margin2 expansion of 40 to 60 basis points year over year. Adjusted earnings per share2,3 is now expected to be in the range of $10.45 to $10.65, up 20 cents at the midpoint from the prior guidance range. Operating cash flow is still expected to be in the range of $6.7 billion to $7.1 billion, with free cash flow1 in the range of $5.4 billion to $5.8 billion. Excluding the impact of the Bombardier agreement signed in the fourth quarter of 2024, the company expects organic sales growth of 3% to 4%, segment margin down 30 to 10 basis points year over year, and adjusted earnings per share up 1% to 3% year over year. Guidance now includes the impact of the Sundyne acquisition, which closed in June, and the sale of the company's Personal Protective Equipment business, which closed in May. A summary of the company's full-year guidance changes can be found in Table 1.
Portfolio Transformation
In February, Honeywell announced that its Board of Directors concluded its comprehensive portfolio review and decided to pursue a separation of its Automation and Aerospace businesses. The planned separation, coupled with the previously announced plan to spin advanced materials (now expected in the fourth quarter of 2025), will result in three publicly-listed industry leaders and is intended to be fully completed in the second half of 2026. To oversee the transformation processes, Honeywell formed dedicated separation management offices to ensure that its business leaders remain focused on managing day-to-day operations.
During the second quarter, Honeywell continued to optimize its portfolio and judiciously deploy shareholder capital ahead of the planned separation, including repurchasing $1.7 billion of its shares. In May, the company closed the sale of its personal protective equipment business for $1.3 billion, and in July it announced a review of strategic alternatives for its productivity solutions and services and warehouse and workflow solutions businesses. In addition, Honeywell announced the acquisition of Johnson Matthey's Catalyst Technologies business in May for £1.8 billion, closed the acquisition of Sundyne in June for $2.2 billion, and completed the strategic tuck-in acquisition of Li-ion Tamer in July. With these latest transactions, Honeywell has now announced $13.5 billion of acquisitions since December 2023 and exceeded its commitment, unveiled at its 2023 Investor Day, to deploy at least $25 billion toward high-return capital expenditures, dividends, opportunistic share repurchases, and accretive acquisitions through 2025.
Second-Quarter Performance
Honeywell sales for the second quarter were up 8% year over year on a reported basis and 5% on an organic1 basis year over year. The second-quarter financial results can be found in Tables 2 and 3.
Aerospace Technologies sales for the second quarter increased 6% organically1 from the prior year, driven by continued strength in both defense and space and commercial aftermarket. Defense and space grew 13% year over year, aided by an elevated global demand environment. Commercial aftermarket sales increased 7%, led by growth in air transport and ongoing supply chain unlock. Backlog grew 16% from the previous year, supported by strong double-digit growth in orders. Segment margin contracted 170 basis points to 25.5% as commercial excellence and productivity actions were more than offset by cost inflation and the impact of acquisitions.
Industrial Automation sales for the second quarter were flat on an organic1 basis. Process solutions increased 1% year over year, led by a return to growth in smart energy. Sensing and safety technologies sales increased 4% year over year, driven by a third consecutive quarter of growth in sensing on sustained demand for healthcare sensors. Sales in warehouse and workflow solutions declined 4% year over year due to timing of large project execution. Productivity solutions and services sales decreased 7% year over year, largely as a result of challenging demand in Europe. Segment margin expanded 20 basis points year over year to 19.2% as productivity actions and commercial excellence more than offset cost pressures.
Building Automation sales for the second quarter increased 8% organically year over year. Building products grew 9% with strength across fire, security, and building management systems. Building solutions improved 5% led by growth in the Middle East. Orders grew both year over year and sequentially, led by strength in products. Segment margin expanded 90 basis points from the prior year to 26.2%, driven by volume leverage and benefit from the access solutions acquisition.
Energy and Sustainability Solutions sales for the second quarter increased 6% organically year over year. UOP grew 16%, driven by strong petrochemical catalyst shipments, higher licensing sales volumes in gas processing, and strong backlog conversion in sustainability projects. Advanced materials sales increased 1% in the quarter, as strength in specialty chemicals and materials more than offset the continuation of challenging prior year comparisons in fluorine products in the first half of the year. Segment margin contracted 110 basis points to 24.1% as pressure from a customer settlement and cost inflation were partially offset by volume leverage and the margin-accretive LNG acquisition.
Conference Call Details
Honeywell will discuss its second-quarter results and full-year 2025 guidance during an investor conference call starting at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time today. A live webcast of the investor call as well as related presentation materials will be available through the Investor Relations section of the company's website (www.honeywell.com/investor). A replay of the webcast will be available for 30 days following the presentation.
