Dow Chemical's Stock Rallies After Profit Beat

Dow Chemical's stock rallied 3.7% in premarket trade Thursday, after the chemical giant beat profit expectations, and was upbeat about 2015. For the quarter ended Dec. 31, adjusted earnings, which excludes non-recurring items, rose to $992 million, or 85 cents a share, from $793 million, or 65 cents a share, in the year-earlier period, and were above the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of 69 cents a share. Revenue was roughly flat at $14.38 billion, compared with analyst forecasts of $14.48 billion. For 2015, the company said tightening supply and positive underlying demand is expected to offset the challenges resulting from falling oil prices. "We believe lower oil prices are a relative positive for Dow and a boost for the global economy," said Chief Executive Andrew Liveris. The stock has lost 9.2% over the past three months through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 1%.