Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

FMC (FMC - Free Report) is expected to deliver a year-over-year decline in earnings on lower revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended June 2026. This widely-known consensus outlook gives a good sense of the company's earnings picture, but how the actual results compare to these estimates is a powerful factor that could impact its near-term stock price.

The earnings report, which is expected to be released on July 29, might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations. On the other hand, if they miss, the stock may move lower.

While management's discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations, it's worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise.

Zacks Consensus EstimateThis chemical producer is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.21 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -69.6%.

Revenues are expected to be $909.57 million, down 13.4% from the year-ago quarter.

Estimate Revisions TrendThe consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 4.69% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period.

Investors should keep in mind that the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts may not always get reflected in the aggregate change.

Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Earnings WhisperEstimate revisions ahead of a company's earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out. Our proprietary surprise prediction model -- the Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction) -- has this insight at its core.

The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier.

Thus, a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate. However, the model's predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only.

A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat, particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time, and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP.

Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss. Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and/or Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) or 5 (Strong Sell).

How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for FMC?For FMC, the Most Accurate Estimate is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, suggesting that analysts have recently become bearish on the company's earnings prospects. This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of -13.25%.

On the other hand, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of #5.

So, this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that FMC will beat the consensus EPS estimate.

Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue?Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings. So, it's worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number.

For the last reported quarter, it was expected that FMC would post a loss of$0.39 per share when it actually produced a loss of -$0.23, delivering a surprise of +41.03%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates three times.

Bottom LineAn earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower. Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors. Similarly, unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss.

That said, betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success. This is why it's worth checking a company's Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

FMC doesn't appear a compelling earnings-beat candidate. However, investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Tessenderlo Group's investment reflects its strategy of making cornerstone minority investments in high-quality companies Investment enables FMC to achieve approximately $1 billion debt paydown target FMC concludes strategic options review FMC maintains focus on delivering on its operational and strategic plan , /PRNewswire/ -- FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC), a leading global agricultural sciences company, and Tessenderlo Group (XBRU: TESB), a Belgian-based industrial group, today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Tessenderlo Group will make a strategic minority equity investment in FMC Corporation of approximately $400 million USD at a price of $13.30 per share. Upon completion of the transaction, Tessenderlo Group will own approximately 20.0% of the outstanding shares of FMC common stock.

"Our investment in FMC perfectly aligns with Tessenderlo Group's strategy to expand our agro platform through strategic cornerstone investments whereby we take a minority position in high-quality companies. FMC offers an attractive opportunity to invest in a business with meaningful long-term potential driven by a new generation of proprietary molecules that are renewing its portfolio and strengthening its competitive position," said Luc Tack, chief executive officer, Tessenderlo Group.

"This agreement follows a comprehensive and deliberate process, and our Board is confident that entering into this agreement is the best path forward for our company and its shareholders," said Pierre Brondeau, chairman, chief executive officer and president.

This transaction represents the conclusion of the FMC Board of Directors' exploration of strategic options, which was announced in February 2026. FMC intends to use the funds to pay down debt, allowing the Company to reach its approximately $1 billion debt paydown target. With this investment, FMC is well positioned to execute on its operational and strategic plan as an independent company, which includes advancing its R&D pipeline and accelerating the commercialization of its innovations.

In addition to the investment by Tessenderlo Group, over the past several months, FMC has taken a number of steps toward its goals of unlocking capital, sharpening its strategic focus and improving financial flexibility, including:

Amended its Revolving Credit Facility to achieve significant covenant relief;   Raised $1.2 billion in a secured high-yield bond offering; Signed an agreement to sell the Company's India commercial business for $252 million; Entered into a strategic supply and license agreement with Corteva, Inc., which includes an initial prepayment of $200 million; and Signed a framework agreement for a $114 million sale & leaseback of its Newark, Delaware property. Brondeau concluded, "We believe the strategic and operational actions taken by FMC over the last several months, combined with our significantly improved leverage and liquidity position, will deliver value to our shareholders, putting FMC on a path to growth as we strongly serve our customers and markets."

The closing of the transaction is subject to customary conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals.

BofA Securities and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC are serving as financial advisors and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as legal counsel to FMC Corporation.

Stibbe BV/SRL and Sullivan & Cromwell LLP are serving as legal advisors to Tessenderlo Group NV.

About FMC
FMC Corporation is a global agricultural sciences company dedicated to helping growers produce food, feed, fiber and fuel for an expanding world population while adapting to a changing environment. FMC's innovative crop protection solutions – including biologicals, crop nutrition, digital and precision agriculture – enable growers and crop advisers to address their toughest challenges economically while protecting the environment. FMC is committed to discovering new herbicide, insecticide and fungicide active ingredients, product formulations and pioneering technologies that are consistently better for the planet. Visit fmc.com to learn more and follow us on LinkedIn®.

About Tessenderlo Group
Tessenderlo Group is an industrial group that focuses on agriculture, valorising bio-residuals, machinery, mechanical engineering, electronics, energy, and providing industrial solutions with a focus on water. With its headquarters in Belgium, the group is active in over 100 countries and it has a global team of approximately 7,000 employees. Its belief that "Every Molecule Counts" is at the heart of the strategy of the group: Tessenderlo Group continually strives to valorise its products and processes to the maximum and to add value to everything it does. In 2025, Tessenderlo Group recorded a consolidated revenue of 2.8 billion EUR. Tessenderlo Group is listed on Euronext Brussels and is part of the Next 150 and BEL Mid indices. Financial News wires: Bloomberg: TESB BB - Reuters: TESB.BR - Datastream: B:Tes. For more information about Tessenderlo Group, its people, its brands, and its results, please visit www.tessenderlo.com.

FMC Disclaimer
Statement under the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:  FMC and its representatives may from time to time make written or oral statements that are "forward-looking" and provide other than historical information, including statements contained in this press release, information regarding the proposed transaction, the ability to negotiate a leaseback agreement, any impact on FMC's research operations, and the expected timing of and proceeds from the proposed transaction.

In some cases, FMC has identified these forward-looking statements by such words or phrases as "outlook", "will likely result," "is confident that," "expect," "expects," "should," "could," "may," "will continue to," "believe," "believes," "anticipates," "predicts," "forecasts," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "intends" or similar expressions identifying "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including the negative of those words or phrases. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current views and assumptions regarding future events, future business conditions and the outlook for the company based on currently available information. The forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by any forward-looking statement, including risks relating to the proposed transaction and the risk that the proposed transaction is not successfully completed. These statements are qualified by reference to the risk factors included in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 (the "2025 Form 10-K"), the section captioned "Forward-Looking Information" in Part II of the 2025 Form 10-K and to similar risk factors and cautionary statements in all other reports and forms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). We wish to caution readers not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made.  Forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by the above cautionary statement.

We specifically decline to undertake any obligation, and specifically disclaims any duty, to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements that have been made to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events, except as may be required by law.

Tessenderlo Group Disclaimer
This document may contain forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the views of management regarding future events at the date of this document. Furthermore, they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be different from any results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Tessenderlo Group provides the information in this press release as at the date of publication and, subject to applicable legislation, does not undertake any obligation to update, clarify or correct any forward-looking statements contained in this press release in light of new information, future events or otherwise. Tessenderlo Group disclaims any liability for statements made or published by third parties (including any employees who are not explicitly mandated by Tessenderlo Group) and, subject to applicable legislation, does not undertake any obligation to correct inaccurate data, information, conclusions or opinions published by third parties in relation to this or any other press release it issues.

SOURCE FMC Corporation