(Reuters) – U.S. engineering and industrial software firm Emerson Electric Co on Wednesday raised its fiscal 2023 outlook and reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, on the back of strong demand for its automation systems in a tight labor market.
Shares of the company were up 2.1% in premarket trading.
The firm has benefited from companies worldwide looking to automate their assembly lines to help meet rising demand for goods amid a shortage of workers.
Emerson now expects fiscal 2023 net sales growth between 9% and 10.5%, up from its previous guidance of between 8% and 10%. It also expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $4.15 and $4.25, up from the previous forecast of $4.00 to $4.15.
The St. Louis, Missouri-based company has been streamlining its operations over the past few years, including executing a string of deals, to capitalize on upbeat demand for industrial automation.
“Emerson’s outstanding second-quarter results were driven by strong end-market demand,” CEO Lal Karsanbhai said.
The industrial conglomerate reported adjusted earnings per share, excluding the contribution from Emerson’s software units merged with Aspen Technology, of $1.05 per share for the quarter ended March 31, beating analysts’ expectation of 97 cents per share.
Revenue for the quarter was $3.75 billion, compared with analysts’ expectation of $3.65 billion.
Separately, Emerson said on Wednesday vice president Mike Baughman has been promoted to chief financial officer effective May 10, succeeding Frank Dellaquila who will be retiring.
(Reporting by Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)
