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U.K. (FTSE) Specialty Chemicals Industry Analysis

UpdatedMar 26, 2026
DataAggregated Company Financials
Companies12
  • 7D3.2%
  • 3M-6.5%
  • 1Y3.0%
  • YTDn/a

The Specialty Chemicals industry is up 3.2% in the last week, with Croda International up 8.1%. This means that the industry has gained 3.0% over the past year. Earnings are forecast to grow by 29% annually.

Industry Valuation and Performance

Has the U.K. Specialty Chemicals Industry valuation changed over the past few years?

DateMarket CapRevenueEarningsPEAbsolute PEPS
Thu, 26 Mar 2026UK£8.8bUK£16.2b-UK£36,166,032.5920.6x-244x0.5x
Sat, 21 Feb 2026UK£10.0bUK£16.3b-UK£35,539,974.6825.1x-280.9x0.6x
Mon, 19 Jan 2026UK£9.8bUK£16.3b-UK£34,030,487.6518.3x-288x0.6x
Wed, 17 Dec 2025UK£9.3bUK£16.3b-UK£31,430,011.8116.5x-296.8x0.6x
Fri, 14 Nov 2025UK£9.5bUK£16.3bUK£432.9m11.7x22x0.6x
Sun, 12 Oct 2025UK£9.2bUK£16.3bUK£433.3m14.7x21.2x0.6x
Tue, 09 Sep 2025UK£8.7bUK£16.3bUK£434.9m21.3x20.1x0.5x
Thu, 07 Aug 2025UK£8.6bUK£16.3bUK£432.9m20.1x19.8x0.5x
Sat, 05 Jul 2025UK£9.4bUK£16.3bUK£453.3m21.8x20.8x0.6x
Mon, 02 Jun 2025UK£9.2bUK£16.3bUK£451.5m19.9x20.4x0.6x
Wed, 30 Apr 2025UK£8.3bUK£16.6bUK£597.4m16.4x13.9x0.5x
Fri, 28 Mar 2025UK£8.5bUK£16.6bUK£595.0m15.4x14.2x0.5x
Sun, 23 Feb 2025UK£9.3bUK£16.6bUK£584.2m17.4x15.9x0.6x
Tue, 21 Jan 2025UK£9.4bUK£16.7bUK£583.3m18.8x16.2x0.6x
Thu, 19 Dec 2024UK£9.5bUK£16.6bUK£584.5m20.6x16.2x0.6x
Sat, 16 Nov 2024UK£9.7bUK£17.7bUK£159.8m24x60.8x0.5x
Mon, 14 Oct 2024UK£10.7bUK£17.7bUK£161.3m25.7x66.3x0.6x
Wed, 11 Sep 2024UK£10.7bUK£17.7bUK£165.4m26x64.8x0.6x
Fri, 09 Aug 2024UK£10.8bUK£17.7bUK£145.1m26.3x74.4x0.6x
Sun, 07 Jul 2024UK£11.5bUK£17.7bUK£199.2m30.6x57.7x0.6x
Tue, 04 Jun 2024UK£12.6bUK£17.7bUK£194.8m33.1x64.6x0.7x
Thu, 02 May 2024UK£12.5bUK£19.1bUK£297.5m22.4x41.9x0.7x
Sat, 30 Mar 2024UK£12.9bUK£19.1bUK£295.6m21.1x43.8x0.7x
Mon, 26 Feb 2024UK£12.3bUK£19.5bUK£187.4m18.1x65.7x0.6x
Wed, 24 Jan 2024UK£11.6bUK£19.5bUK£186.6m19.2x62.4x0.6x
Fri, 22 Dec 2023UK£12.9bUK£19.5bUK£186.3m21.3x69.2x0.7x
Sun, 19 Nov 2023UK£12.0bUK£20.3bUK£285.3m18.3x41.9x0.6x
Tue, 17 Oct 2023UK£11.4bUK£20.4bUK£312.8m20.9x36.5x0.6x
Thu, 14 Sep 2023UK£12.4bUK£20.3bUK£313.1m23x39.6x0.6x
Sat, 12 Aug 2023UK£13.6bUK£20.5bUK£445.0m27x30.5x0.7x
Mon, 10 Jul 2023UK£13.5bUK£20.7bUK£901.7m11.9x14.9x0.6x
Wed, 07 Jun 2023UK£15.0bUK£20.8bUK£901.4m13.3x16.7x0.7x
Fri, 05 May 2023UK£16.2bUK£20.7bUK£936.5m14.5x17.3x0.8x
Sun, 02 Apr 2023UK£15.8bUK£20.7bUK£936.1m13.9x16.9x0.8x
Price to Earnings Ratio

16.9x


Total Market Cap: UK£15.8bTotal Earnings: UK£936.1mTotal Revenue: UK£20.7bTotal Market Cap vs Earnings and Revenue0%0%0%
U.K. Specialty Chemicals Industry Price to Earnings3Y Average 2.8x202420252026
Current Industry PE
  • Investors are pessimistic on the British Specialty Chemicals industry, indicating that they anticipate long term growth rates will be lower than they have historically.
  • The industry is trading close to its 3-year average PS ratio of 0.61x.
Past Earnings Growth
  • Total earnings for the Specialty Chemicals industry have declined over the last three years, with the industry now making a loss overall.
  • Revenues have also declined 7.7% per year, which is driving profits down.

Industry Comparison

How does U.K. Specialty Chemicals compare with similar industries?

GB Market-1.97%
Materials0.18%
Chemicals2.69%
Specialty Chemicals3.17%
Industrial Gases11.63%
Fertilizers and Agricultural Chemicals-5.40%
Commodity Chemicals-5.84%
Industry PEThere are no additional sub-industries under this industry.
Forecasted GrowthThere are no additional sub-industries under this industry.

Top Stock Gainers and Losers

Which companies have driven the market over the last 7 days?

CompanyLast Price7D1YValuation
CRDA Croda InternationalUK£28.338.1%
+UK£295.4m		-3.2%PE63.7x
SYNT SynthomerUK£0.2752.2%
+UK£15.4m		-77.1%PS0.02x
VCT VictrexUK£5.630.5%
+UK£2.6m		-39.8%PE17.6x
HDD HardideUK£0.333.1%
+UK£788.1k		428.0%PE146.1x
CAR CarcloUK£0.461.0%
+UK£330.4k		97.7%PE18x

Latest News

ELM
UK£1.50
Elementis
7D
-2.0%
1Y
9.5%
SYNT
UK£0.27
Synthomer
7D
52.2%
1Y
-77.1%

SYNT: Cost Actions And Bio-Based Partnership Will Support Future Margin Resilience

Analysts have adjusted their Synthomer price targets slightly to reflect updated views on revenue contraction, slightly higher profit margins, and a modestly lower future P/E, resulting in a revised fair value estimate of £0.59 per share. What's in the News Synthomer entered a partnership with Godavari Biorefineries Limited to develop bio-based alternatives to existing fossil-based monomers.
VCT
UK£5.63
Victrex
7D
0.5%
1Y
-39.8%

VCT: Future Upside Will Be Anchored By Resilient Earnings Framework

Analysts have trimmed their price target on Victrex by £1.00, reflecting slightly lower fair value estimates and modestly softer assumptions for revenue growth and profit margins, while still using a similar discount rate and future P/E multiple. Analyst Commentary Bullish Takeaways Bullish analysts view the £1.00 reduction in the price target as a fine tuning of fair value rather than a shift in the long term thesis, with the core assumptions on discount rate and future P/E multiple kept broadly intact.
CRDA
UK£28.33
Croda International
7D
8.1%
1Y
-3.2%

CRDA: Higher Price Move To 3,280 And Modest P/E Reset Signal Upside

Narrative Update The analyst price target for Croda International has been raised to £3,280, an increase of £250. Analysts reference recent target moves from major banks, along with small adjustments to revenue growth, profit margin, discount rate and future P/E assumptions.
JMAT
UK£19.05
Johnson Matthey
7D
-0.4%
1Y
39.6%

JMAT: Future Returns Will Balance Cautious Outlook With Higher Margin Expectations

Johnson Matthey's analyst fair value estimate has been raised from £13.95 to £19.00, even as price targets across the Street have been reset lower into a tighter £2,000 to £2,250 range. This reflects analysts' view that improved margin assumptions and a slightly lower future P/E balance a more cautious revenue outlook.
SNOX
UK£0.45
SulNOx Group
7D
-5.3%
1Y
-55.0%
HDD
UK£0.33
Hardide
7D
3.1%
1Y
428.0%
DCTA
UK£0.081
Directa Plus
7D
-20.7%
1Y
30.0%
HAYD
UK£0.0029
Haydale
7D
-14.9%
1Y
111.1%
TET
UK£1.96
Treatt
7D
-2.0%
1Y
-42.2%
IOF
UK£0.24
Iofina
7D
-1.0%
1Y
3.3%
CAR
UK£0.46
Carclo
7D
1.0%
1Y
97.7%

Market Cool On Carclo plc's (LON:CAR) Revenues Pushing Shares 25% Lower

Dec 18
Market Cool On Carclo plc's (LON:CAR) Revenues Pushing Shares 25% Lower