Two kinds of CFO, one earnings season
The latest earnings calls show two different economies. At Lam Research, which makes machines used to build computer chips, finance chief Douglas Bettinger said: "We're expecting revenue of $8.6 billion, plus or minus $400 million" for the December quarter, with earnings of $2.33 per share, give or take $0.15.1 At Dow and Union Pacific, the finance chiefs spent their time on cost cuts, cash and fuel bills.2,3
Artificial intelligence appears in this season mainly as a reason companies buy equipment and, in smaller companies, as a way to save on costs. The big industrial names are not describing an AI boom of their own. They are describing how they survive expensive energy.
Lam Research: strong demand, held back by supply
Lam's chief executive, Timothy Archer, said the September quarter brought record revenue and profit, with operating margin topping 40% for the first time.1 He put preliminary 2027 spending on wafer fab equipment (the machinery that builds chips) at more than $200 billion, with growth led by memory chips (DRAM).1 By our own arithmetic, that is roughly five times Dow's entire 2025 revenue of about $40 billion.4
Bettinger was candid about the limits. "This revenue guide would have been a bit higher, if not for some near-term supply chain constraints that we are actively managing," he said.1 Asked about demand without those limits, he declined to give a figure: "I'm not going to put a number on what the unconstrained demand would be." He did say it would be higher.1 The summary of the call also notes a falling share of sales from China, though the excerpt we hold does not give the numbers.1
Do you already own it? Via News's records list Lam as a member of the S&P 500 Index, so anyone holding a broad US index fund has some exposure.5 The same records show it supplies memory chips for AI and competes with ASML.5
Dow: cutting costs while energy stays expensive
Dow's story is self-help, meaning savings a company controls itself. CFO Jeffrey Tate said: "we remain focused on our commitment to implement approximately $1.3 billion in net benefits this year as well as $1.3 billion in 2027."2 He said selling and administrative costs were down $130 million from the previous quarter, and that the quarter's improvement from these programmes exceeded $150 million.2 Chief executive Karen Carter said the programme includes about 4,500 role reductions, around 70% of them already carried out.2
The reason is on the other side of the ledger. "Persistently high energy costs continue to challenge industry economics," Tate said, and he also pointed to record-low water on the Rhine disrupting logistics.2 For the fourth quarter, the call's headline puts operating earnings at about $1.5 billion. Tate said normal seasonal weakness would be largely offset by more than $100 million of lower maintenance-shutdown spending.2 He expects polyethylene (plastic) margins to improve by about $0.02 per pound.2
Our checked filings show why the savings matter. Dow's revenue fell from $44.6 billion in 2023 to $43.0 billion in 2024 and $40.0 billion in 2025.4 Its earnings per share went from $0.82 to $1.57, then to a loss of $3.70 in 2025.4 Cash generated by operations fell from $5.2 billion to $2.9 billion to $1.0 billion over the same three years.4 Management's 2027 target of 70% to 80% cash conversion (the share of earnings turned into cash) looks ambitious against that run.2,4
Liquidity is the cushion. Tate said: "We have approximately $14 billion of liquidity and no substantive debt maturities until 2029."2 Dow reported $1.1 billion of free cash flow in the third quarter.2 Its filed cash balance was $4.1 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2026, against $1.5 billion a year earlier.4 The share count has crept up, from about 702 million in 2023 to about 718 million in 2025.4
Union Pacific: fuel, capex and a merger
At Union Pacific, CEO Vincenzo Vena reported record results: net income of $2.1 billion and adjusted earnings per share up 15% to $3.53, on 6% volume growth. He added: "Higher fuel prices were a big cost driver."3 CFO Jennifer Hamann put numbers on it: "Fuel expense grew 69% on a 64% increase in average fuel price," from $2.56 to $4.21 per gallon.3
The railroad is also saving cash for its planned Norfolk Southern merger. "We will continue growing our cash reserves in anticipation of closing the Norfolk Southern merger in the second half of 2027," Hamann said.3 The company affirmed high single-digit 2026 earnings growth while lifting 2026 capital spending to $3.5 billion.3 The dossier also notes a CFO transition at Union Pacific, but the excerpt we hold gives no details, so we do not speculate.3
Smaller companies: AI as a cost tool
The AI story is clearest at AudioEye. CEO Kelly Georgevich credited "efficiencies and increased AI use across the company" for record revenue and said she expects about 50% growth in adjusted EBITDA (a measure of operating profit) in 2026. She also expects a fourth-quarter annualised run rate of over $17 million, up from an earlier $15 million.6 SAP, for its part, named Morgan Foods among customers using its new AI tools, which fits the early-planning picture, though the excerpt shows no financial results.7
Elsewhere, our records show financing and regulatory events extending into 2027. Origin Bancorp has crossed $10 billion in assets, which triggers Durbin Amendment limits on card fees. The company puts the cost at $4 million to $4.5 million from midyear 2027.8 It also expects processing costs to fall by $0.6 million a quarter from April 2027.8 Our knowledge graph links Rivian to its R2 vehicle and to a spin-off called Mind Robotics, though we hold no financial detail on either.8
How much to trust the sources
Most of this reporting comes from NewsEOD summaries of earnings calls. Our measurements show only 61% of 1,119 checked claims from that source held up, and 52% of 6,220 for the press-release item.1,7 That is why we lean on direct quotes and on Dow's SEC-filed figures, which are verified. The call-based figures, including guidance, savings and fuel prices, are management statements. Several summary figures, such as the fuel price range and the cash-conversion target, come from the dossier's summaries rather than quoted words.
There are also gaps. The sources contain nothing on how Lam's or Dow's customers are actually doing, and our evidence cannot say whether the AI equipment boom will broaden into the wider economy.
What to watch
- Whether Lam's supply constraints ease enough to lift its revenue above the $8.6 billion midpoint, and whether it ever puts a number on unconstrained 2027 demand.1
- Whether Dow's $1.3 billion of 2027 savings turns into the 70% to 80% cash conversion it targets, given its filed cash flow history.2,4
- Union Pacific's cash build and fuel costs ahead of the Norfolk Southern merger, targeted for the second half of 2027.3
- Origin Bancorp's card-fee hit from midyear 2027, against the processing savings from April 2027.8
