CluenexDow Inc. DOW
Dow Inc. scores weak on business quality (2.2 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Dow Inc. does
Dow Inc manufactures materials like plastics, industrial intermediates, and coatings, selling them to global industrial and consumer brands. Customers pay for high-volume chemical inputs used in packaging, infrastructure, and mobility.
- What it does best
Dow holds massive global scale in commodity chemicals, producing high volumes that few rivals can match. Gross margin sits at 9.9%, trailing peer CBT's 23.2%, showing that sheer volume struggles to protect pricing power during industry downcycles.
- The main risk
A negative net income of $1.3 billion underscores severe margin compression from weak chemical pricing. If input costs rise or demand stays flat, debt obligations totaling $18.2 billion will strain cash flows further.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin is compressed at 3.7% and net margin sits at -3.2%, driven by weak cyclical demand. This business struggles to generate profit at current scale.
Dow lacks a durable moat, sitting in the bottom decile of its sector with a gross margin of 9.9% and ROE of -8.0%.
Revenue contracted 7.0% to $41.3 billion, continuing a multi-year downward trend from $56.9 billion in 2022 as chemical markets soften.
Total debt of $18.2 billion outweighs cash of $4.2 billion, leaving net debt at $14.0 billion. Interest coverage of 1.8x leaves little buffer for earnings shocks.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on DOW
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Dow Inc. scores weak on the Cluenex quality check (2.2 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is weak, moat weak, growth slow and financial health weak.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Oct 22, 2026, before the open.
See DOW today
- Today's verdict on DOW, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “Dow Inc. (DOW)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/dow/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.