Ahead Of The Bell: Cytec Downgraded On 1Q Loss

NEW YORK (AP) — Specialty chemical maker Cytec Industries Inc., which posted a first-quarter loss and cut its dividend late Thursday, faces a number of upcoming challenges said one analyst as he downgraded the company's rating.

Credit Suisse analyst John McNulty said he expects end-market demand weakness to cut away at Cytec's profits. He lowered his 2009 earnings estimate for Cytec to $1.21 per share from $2.24 per share. For 2010, he reduced his forecast to $2.30 per share from $3.53 per share.

McNulty said that over the next year the company will face other headwinds, including the pending aerospace downturn and Cytec's profit-challenged surface specialty division.

These challenges, along with Cytec's recent dismal news, prompted McNulty to downgrade the company's stock to "Neutral" from "Outperform."

Jefferies & Co. analyst Laurence Alexander warned that company is also up against volatile raw material prices and operating issues in its engineered materials division.

Cytec, on Thursday after the markets closed, posted a first-quarter loss of $100,000 and flat earnings per share for the quarter, compared with a net profit of $49.1 million, or $1.01 per share, for the same quarter of the prior year.