WILMINGTON, Del., Dec. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DuPont (NYSE:DD) today updated its fourth quarter 2006 earnings outlook for significant items. The company previously announced that 2006 reported earnings were expected to be about $2.86, including the net benefit of $.01 per share from previously reported significant items. Today, the company said additional items will be included in its fourth quarter 2006 reported earnings, providing a net benefit of approximately $370 million to net income, or $0.39 per share. Including these fourth quarter significant items, the company anticipates 2006 reported earnings per share will be about $3.25 per share. The net cash flow benefit from these items is expected to be about $25 million in the fourth quarter. Based on preliminary estimates, the following items are expected to be recorded in the fourth quarter: -- A charge of about $200 million, pre-tax, related to today's separately announced Agriculture & Nutrition investment and streamlining plan. -- A charge of about $50 million, pre-tax, related to an underperforming industrial chemicals asset held for sale within the company's Safety & Protection segment. -- An estimated benefit of about $60 million, pre-tax, resulting from insurance recoveries related to asbestos litigation expenses incurred by the company in prior periods and additional Hurricane Katrina insurance recoveries. -- An estimated net benefit of about $500 million, after-tax, for the reversal of accruals related to tax settlements and related interest, reversal of tax valuation allowances, and the finalization of taxes related to the company's repatriation of foreign earnings under the American Jobs Creation Act. "We are shifting capital and resources to our most attractive growth opportunities," said Jeffrey L. Keefer, DuPont executive vice president and chief financial officer. "In addition to the recently announced divestitures in the Coatings & Color Technologies segment, several of these items are the result of executing our strategy to increase return on invested capital." The company is scheduled to report its fourth quarter and full-year 2006 financial results on Jan. 23, 2007. DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to better, safer, healthier lives for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation. Forward-Looking Statements: This news release contains forward-looking statements based on management's current expectations, estimates and projections. All statements that address expectations or projections about the future, including statements about the company's strategy for growth, product development, market position, expected expenditures and financial results are forward-looking statements. Some of the forward-looking statements may be identified by words like "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "intends," "projects," "indicates," and similar expressions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors, including those discussed more fully elsewhere in this release and in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by DuPont, particularly its latest annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly report on Form 10-Q, as well as others, could cause results to differ materially from those stated. These factors include, but are not limited to changes in the laws, regulations, policies and economic conditions, including inflation, interest and foreign currency exchange rates, of countries in which the company does business; competitive pressures; successful integration of structural changes, including restructuring plans, acquisitions, divestitures and alliances; cost of raw materials, research and development of new products, including regulatory approval and market acceptance; seasonality of sales of agricultural products; and severe weather events that cause business interruptions, including plant and power outages, or disruptions in supplier and customer operations. DATASOURCE: DuPont CONTACT: Anthony Farina of DuPont, +1-302-774-4005, Web site: http://www.dupont.com/

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