Carrier Earnings: Commercial HVAC Demand Remains Robust; Portfolio Transformation Continues

Overall, Carrier delivered a solid fourth-quarter performance, although there were puts and takes. Flat year-over-year organic revenue growth during the quarter fell short of our expectations as continued distributor inventory destocking of residential heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems more than offset strong demand for light commercial and larger commercial HVAC equipment and services. And despite HVAC segment revenue declining 1% year over year, the segment delivered notable adjusted operating margin expansion that propelled consolidated margin higher by 80 basis points to 10.9%.