The German chemical company BASF said on Thursday that its first-quarter net income dropped to €1.37 billion ($1.47 billion) from last year's €1.56 billion - a 12.4% decline.
Earnings per share were €1.53, lower than €1.75 in the prior year. Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) dropped 5.6% year-over-year to €2.66 billion, and EBITDA before special items amounted to €2.71 billion, down 5.3% from last year.
The EBITDA margin before special items was 15.4%, up from 14.3% in the prior-year quarter. Sales in the first quarter amounted to €17.55 billion, 12.2% lower than €19.99 billion in the prior-year quarter.
The decline in sales was mainly driven by considerably reduced prices as a result of lower raw materials and energy prices in almost all segments as well as lower precious metal prices in the surface technologies segment. As previously announced, the board of executive directors and the supervisory board will propose to the annual shareholders' meeting a dividend of €3.40 per share, matching the prior-year level.
Looking ahead for fiscal 2024, the company continues to expect EBITDA before special items of between €8.0 billion and €8.6 billion.