DuPont to Take $315M Restructuring Charge in Q4

DuPont said it will record a pre-tax charge of about $315 million in the fourth quarter, related to the spin-off of its performance chemical business and other restructuring measures.

DuPont had already taken a charge of $270 million in the second quarter due to the restructuring, which is expected to be completed by mid-2016 and help the company save at least $1 billion per year.

The company's shares fell 1.2 to $71.40 in extended trading on Thursday.

The latest restructuring charge comprises $160 million for employee separation costs, $140 million in asset-related charges and $15 million in contract termination costs, DuPont said in a statement.

The company said the performance chemical business will be named The Chemours Co and will apply to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol 'CC'.

Prior to the spin-off, expected to be completed by mid-2015, Chemours is expected to pay a one-time dividend to DuPont.

Under pressure from activist investor Nelson Peltz and as part of a plan to stick to less volatile businesses, DuPont had decided to spin off the unit that has weighed on its results since 2012, mainly due to weak prices.

Peltz's Trian Fund Management LP has urged the company to separate its agriculture, nutrition & health and industrial biosciences units from those that generate strong cash flows, but are more volatile.

Peltz said in September that DuPont's efforts, including spin-off of the chemical unit, were not enough to fix the industrial conglomerate's "underperformance."

(Reporting By Kanika Sikka in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)