Emerson Electric's fiscal year 2022 marked a pivotal transformation for the St. Louis-based industrial technology company, delivering strong financial performance while reshaping its portfolio to focus on automation solutions. The company's full-year net sales reached $19.6 billion, representing an 8 percent increase from the prior year, with underlying sales growing 9 percent.
The results, which now appear prescient given Emerson's continued strong performance through 2025, positioned the company as what CEO Lal Karsanbhai called a "global pure-play automation leader".
Emerson's 2022 earnings per share jumped 42 percent to $5.41 on a GAAP basis, while adjusted earnings per share increased 16 percent to $5.2512. The company's pretax margin expanded to 20.8 percent, up 480 basis points from the previous year, while adjusted EBITA margin reached 21.6 percent1.
Fourth quarter performance capped the strong year, with net sales up 8 percent and underlying sales climbing 12 percent. Regional performance was particularly robust in the Americas, which grew 17 percent, while Europe increased 3 percent and Asia, Middle East & Africa rose 7 percent1.
The 2022 results came amid what Karsanbhai described as "significant progress on our portfolio and culture transformation while maintaining our world-class operational execution"1. The company's strategic repositioning included announcing plans to divest its Climate Technologies business, a move that would prove central to its automation-focused strategy.
This transformation strategy has continued to pay dividends. By May 2025, Emerson completed its acquisition of AspenTech, marking "the conclusion of Emerson's portfolio transformation," according to Karsanbhai23. The company also decided to retain its Safety & Productivity segment after reviewing strategic alternatives.
Emerson's 2022 performance established a foundation for continued growth. The company's second quarter 2025 results showed the strategy's success, with management reporting "strong underlying orders" and "record gross profit and adjusted segment EBITA margins"1.
The company's cash generation remained strong in 2022, with operating cash flow reaching $2.9 billion, though free cash flow of $2.4 billion was down 20 percent due to higher working capital from increased sales and supply chain constraints2.
"Emerson closed out a strong 2022 with 9 percent growth in underlying sales and a 16 percent increase in adjusted earnings per share," Karsanbhai said at the time, expressing confidence in the company's automation demand and robust backlog2.
