One-glance verdict
Within fair range
$12.72 our estimate vs market $14.63
Wall Street consensus: $13.59 (6.8% higher than our fair-value estimate)
15% above our estimate
Fundamentals snapshot
BASF SE
BASFY · OQX · Basic Materials · Chemicals
Current price
$14.63
52-week range
$11.93 - $16.25
Market cap
$50.38B
Balance sheet
Stretched
2.91x Stretched
Net debt $21.01B. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
3 Rewards
3 Risks
3 rewards · 3 risks
- Reward Returns 6.1% on equity, ahead of 66% of its peers.
- Reward Free cash flow was positive in 4/10 years.
- Risk Forward P/E (22.3x) is higher than trailing (20.9x) - earnings are expected to drop.
- Risk Net debt grew 12.4% over 3 years.
What this company does
BASF SE
BASF SE makes and sells a wide variety of chemicals used in everything from agriculture and nutrition to car paints and advanced materials. The company makes money from all these different chemical products, with its largest business in basic and specialty chemicals used in many industries. This broad range means BASF's performance is tied to the health of many different parts of the global economy.
How the company got here
BASF SE, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Germany, is one of the world's largest chemical producers. Its long history has seen it evolve from a dye manufacturer to a diversified chemical giant. A key turning point was its expansion into petrochemicals and plastics, which formed the backbone of its growth throughout the 20th century. The company has also strategically acquired and divested businesses over the years to focus on core areas and adapt to changing market demands, solidifying its position as a global leader in the chemical industry.
What it actually does
BASF SE is a chemical company that makes a vast array of products used in almost every industry imaginable. Think of the ingredients that make paints last longer, the plastics in your car, the components in your smartphone, or even the vitamins in your food – BASF likely plays a role. They create the fundamental building blocks and specialized chemicals that other companies use to manufacture countless everyday items, from clothing and construction materials to electronics and pharmaceuticals.
Chemicals
This segment is the foundation of BASF's operations, producing basic chemicals and intermediates. These are like the essential ingredients that other BASF segments and external companies use to create more complex products. This includes petrochemicals, which are derived from petroleum and natural gas, and a wide range of other chemicals that serve as starting materials for plastics, solvents, and many other industrial applications. It's a significant portion of BASF's overall business, providing the raw materials that fuel many other industries.
Materials
In this segment, BASF focuses on creating advanced materials and their precursors. This includes things like polyamides, which are used to make durable plastics for automotive parts and textiles, and isocyanates, a key component in polyurethane foams found in furniture and insulation. They also produce inorganic basic products. This business line is crucial for industries that require high-performance materials, contributing a substantial part of BASF's revenue.
Industrial Solutions
This segment develops and markets ingredients and additives that enhance the performance of industrial products. Examples include polymer dispersions used in paints and coatings, resins for adhesives, and catalysts that speed up chemical reactions in industries like refining and plastics manufacturing. They also provide electronic materials and antioxidants. These specialized chemicals are vital for improving efficiency and product quality across a wide range of sectors, including automotive, construction, and electronics.
Surface Technologies
BASF's Surface Technologies segment offers solutions that protect and enhance surfaces, as well as materials for future technologies. This includes automotive coatings that give cars their color and protection, catalysts used in emissions control systems, and increasingly important, battery materials for electric vehicles. They also provide precious and base metal services. This segment is a key growth area, especially with the rising demand for electric mobility and advanced coatings.
Nutrition & Care
This segment focuses on ingredients for products people use every day in their homes and for their well-being. It provides essential components for the food and animal feed industries, as well as for pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, detergents, and personal care items. Think of vitamins, enzymes, or active ingredients in your shampoo. While perhaps a smaller slice of the overall company compared to industrial chemicals, it directly impacts consumer goods and health.
Agricultural Solutions
BASF's Agricultural Solutions segment is dedicated to helping farmers grow crops more effectively and sustainably. They offer a range of products including seeds and traits (genetically enhanced seeds), crop protection products like fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides to combat diseases and pests, and increasingly, digital farming solutions. This segment plays a critical role in global food production by providing tools to enhance yield and protect crops from various threats.
What management is betting on now
BASF's management is currently focused on driving growth through innovation, particularly in areas like battery materials for electric vehicles and sustainable agricultural solutions. They are also prioritizing operational efficiency to improve profitability, especially in their core chemical segments. A key strategic goal is to increase the share of sales from more specialized, higher-margin products. Furthermore, BASF is investing in digitalization to enhance customer interaction and internal processes, aiming to navigate the evolving chemical landscape and maintain its competitive edge.
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value $12.72 vs current price $14.63
Wall Street consensus is the average analyst price target: $13.59 (6.8% higher than our fair-value estimate).
Our most-likely fair value is $12.72 a share — about 13.1% away from today's price of $14.63, so the stock currently looks fairly priced.
Is it drowning in debt?
Stretched
Net debt $21.0B. Interest coverage 2.9x.
Net debt
$21.01B
Interest coverage
2.91x
BASF SE's profit covers its interest bill about 2.9 times over. which is stronger than most peers shown here and 1 peers sit below 1x, which is the danger zone where profit does not fully cover the interest bill.
Stretched
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
BASFY
BASELINE
BASF SE
Total debt $29.82B Interest coverage 2.91x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $18.97B Interest coverage 0.18x -94% vs BASFY Carries about 15.9x less debt cushion than BASFY.
Total debt $3.18B Interest coverage 2.75x -6% vs BASFY Has roughly the same debt cushion as BASFY.
Total debt $14.33B Interest coverage 1.71x -41% vs BASFY Carries about 1.7x less debt cushion than BASFY.
Total debt $13.92B Interest coverage 9.45x +224% vs BASFY Carries about 3.2x more debt cushion than BASFY.
Total debt $18.27B Interest coverage 13.50x +364% vs BASFY Carries about 4.6x more debt cushion than BASFY.
What you should know
The case for and against BASFY
3 Rewards
3 Risks
Rewards
-
Returns 6.1% on equity, ahead of 66% of its peers.
-
Free cash flow was positive in 4/10 years.
-
Trades at 20.9x P/E vs peer median 37.7x (44.6% cheaper).
Risks
-
Forward P/E (22.3x) is higher than trailing (20.9x) - earnings are expected to drop.
-
Net debt grew 12.4% over 3 years.
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Operating margin compressed from 8.4% to 5.2% over 3 years.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
20.90x
Forward P/E
22.29x
P/B
1.24x
P/S
0.82x
EV/EBITDA
10.75x
PEG ratio
0.71x
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
23.6%
Operating margin
5.2%
Net margin
9.4%
ROE
6.1%
ROA
2.3%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.71x
Current ratio
1.85x
Quick ratio
1.19x
Total debt
$29.82B
Total cash
$8.81B
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$68.83B
Revenue 5Y CAGR
-11.9%
EPS TTM
0.70
EPS 5Y CAGR
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Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$6.27B
Free CF TTM
$1.50B
FCF margin
2.2%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
4.5%
Payout ratio
94.6%
Last ex-div date
2026-05-05