The headline numbers — $9.7 billion of sales and $4.52 of adjusted earnings per share — still include Honeywell Aerospace, even though HONA has been trading on its own since June 29.
The numbers for the company that now trades under HON are smaller and more useful: $5.2 billion of sales, 16% order growth, a backlog of approximately $20 billion, and adjusted earnings of $1.95 per share.
This was not a full quarter of Honeywell Technologies operating without Aerospace. It was the first glimpse at the remaining automation company after the separation.
Honeywell Technologies’ earnings release is here.
The Useful Honeywell Numbers
Honeywell Technologies reported second-quarter sales of $5.187 billion, up 3% as reported and 4% organically. Segment profit rose 9% to $985 million, while segment margin expanded 100 basis points to 19.0%.
Adjusted earnings per share rose 10% to $1.95. Free cash flow increased to $456 million from $114 million a year earlier.
The reported GAAP earnings figure of $16.65 per share is not useful for judging the operating quarter. It includes a one-time gain related to the deconsolidation of Quantinuum. The adjusted figure gives a better view of the continuing business.
Orders were stronger than sales. They rose 16%, pushing backlog to approximately $20 billion.
For a company selling itself as a pure-play automation leader, the order growth was the most encouraging number in the release. Honeywell now has to convert that backlog without giving back the margin improvement.
Building Automation Is Carrying The Quarter
Building Automation was the strongest of Honeywell Technologies’ three segments.
Sales rose 9% organically to $2.002 billion. Segment profit increased 13% to $542 million, and segment margin expanded 90 basis points to 27.1%.
Orders rose 13%, led by data centers and hospitality. Building products grew 10%, helped by continued double-digit growth in fire products, while building solutions grew 7% on stronger service revenue.
This is the part of the remaining Honeywell that already looks ready for public-company scrutiny. It has growth, margins, an installed base and exposure to data-center construction without requiring investors to stretch very far for the connection.
Process Automation Has The Orders, But Not Yet The Quarter
Process Automation and Technology was more uneven.
Organic sales declined 1%. Segment profit fell 4% to $371 million, and margin contracted 180 basis points to 22.1%.
The order book looked much better. Orders rose 24%, led by LNG demand. Project sales increased 5% organically as automation projects returned to growth, but aftermarket sales declined 6% against unusually high catalyst shipments in the prior year.
Honeywell is asking investors to look past a soft quarter toward the backlog. That may prove reasonable. Process orders are growing, LNG remains active and Honeywell closed its acquisition of Johnson Matthey’s Catalyst Technologies business on July 17.
The next few quarters need to show those orders becoming revenue without another step down in margins.
Industrial Automation Looks Better Beneath The Reported Decline
Industrial Automation sales fell 5% on a reported basis to $1.501 billion, but organic sales grew 4%.
Solutions grew 10%, helped by utility projects and backlog conversion in the warehouse business. Products grew 1% on demand for sensing and industrial measurement. Segment margin expanded 90 basis points to 17.2%.
The reported decline reflects a portfolio that is still moving. Honeywell expects to complete the divestitures of its Productivity Solutions and Services and Warehouse and Workflow Solutions businesses by early August.
The Aerospace separation finished the largest piece of Honeywell’s restructuring. The remaining company is still pruning businesses around the edges while adding assets it wants to keep.
Guidance Went Up Where It Counts
Honeywell slightly reduced and narrowed its full-year sales range, from $19.9 billion to $20.2 billion to $19.8 billion to $20.0 billion.
Most of the other changes went in the opposite direction.
| 2026 Guidance | Previous | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Organic sales growth | 2% to 3% | 3% to 4% |
| Segment margin | 19.8% to 20.3% | 20.1% to 20.5% |
| Adjusted EPS | $7.90 to $8.30 | $8.05 to $8.35 |
| Free cash flow | Approximately $2.0 billion | Approximately $2.0 billion |
Honeywell now expects second-half organic growth of 4% to 6%. The company also raised expected full-year margin expansion to 250 to 290 basis points and adjusted earnings growth to 25% to 29%.
The long-term investor pitch calls for 4% to 6% annual organic growth, approximately 24% segment margins and more than $3 billion of free cash flow.
The second quarter reached the bottom of the long-term growth range. The 19% segment margin shows how much of the promised margin expansion still lies ahead.
The Three Honeywells Are Already Going In Different Directions
Honeywell’s breakup has produced three companies with different jobs.
Solstice Advanced Materials has already agreed to buy Element Solutions in a $14.5 billion transaction. We covered Solstice’s first major move after leaving Honeywell.
Honeywell Aerospace began trading as HONA on June 29 and entered the S&P 500 immediately. We looked at HONA’s index treatment and the valuation split between Aerospace and the remaining HON.
Honeywell Technologies keeps the HON ticker, the Dow seat and the automation businesses.
The former Aerospace segment generated $4.5 billion of second-quarter sales and approximately $1.1 billion of segment profit. Honeywell Technologies generated $5.2 billion of sales and $985 million of segment profit.
Those figures help explain why Aerospace often dominated the old Honeywell investment case. The two sides produced similar revenue, but Aerospace produced more segment profit.
HONA will report its own standalone second-quarter results on August 5. Honeywell cautioned that those figures may differ from the former segment results because of carve-out boundaries, corporate-cost allocations and intracompany transactions.
HON Has To Earn The Automation Multiple
Honeywell Technologies has started its independent life with a healthy order book, stronger margins and higher earnings guidance.
Building Automation is already producing the growth and profitability investors were promised. Process Automation has strong orders but still needs better sales and margin conversion. Industrial Automation is improving organically while Honeywell finishes the last of its portfolio work.
The first report did not prove that HON deserves the valuation of a premier automation company. It gave the company a credible opening argument.
For the first time, investors can watch Honeywell’s automation businesses without Aerospace doing most of the talking.
We first laid out the full separation in our article on Honeywell’s three-way breakup.
Disclosure: The author holds shares in SOLS