Manufacturing · Profile from Manufacturing Research Companion: Companies, Strategic Moves, and Technical Studies
Emerson Electric
The St. Louis manufacturer that spent a century making electric motors, fans, compressors, tools and appliance components and then, between 2016 and 2025, sold almost all of them to become a pure-play automation and industrial-software company — valves, instruments and control systems for refineries, chemical plants, power stations, LNG trains and life-sciences plants, plus AspenTech's process-simulation software and National Instruments' test-and-measurement systems. Emerson was founded in 1890 (from memory, verify) and became famous under Chuck Knight (CEO 1973–2000) for a planning process and an unbroken record of rising earnings and dividends (from memory, verify). Its manufacturing story turns on re-making a diversified manufacturer into an automation pure-play: Network Power sold to Platinum Equity (closed 30 Nov 2016, ~$4bn — now Vertiv); a three-step pursuit of Rockwell Automation that Rockwell rejected (up to $225 a share, ~$29bn, withdrawn 28 Nov 2017); control of AspenTech (55% for $6,014m in cash plus two software businesses, May 2022); Climate Technologies sold to Blackstone as Copeland (~$14bn EV, closed 31 May 2023); National Instruments (~$8.2bn, Oct 2023); and the rest of AspenTech at $265 a share (Mar 2025, $7,244m cash). FY2026 net sales were $18,982m (+5%; underlying +4%) at a 28.2% adjusted segment EBITA margin (company, 4 Nov 2026).
At a glance
- Founded
- 1890, St. Louis, as the Emerson Electric Manufacturing Company, making electric motors and fans (from memory, verify)
- Headquarters
- St. Louis (Ferguson), Missouri (from memory, verify)
- Ownership / structure
- Public (NYSE: EMR); fiscal year ends 30 Sep
- Leadership (2026)
- Lal Karsanbhai, president and CEO (company release, Nov 2026); CEO since Feb 2021 (from memory, verify); predecessors David Farr (2000–21) and Chuck Knight (1973–2000) (from memory, verify)
- Segments (FY2026)
- Software & Systems — Control Systems & Software (DeltaV, Ovation, AspenTech) $4,580m and Test & Measurement (NI) $1,732m; Intelligent Devices — Final Control (Fisher valves, actuators) $6,194m, Measurement & Analytical / Sensors (Rosemount) $4,302m, Safety & Productivity $2,174m (FY2026 release; segment labels as given there)
- Scale
- FY2026 (year to 30 Sep 2026): net sales $18,982m (+5%), underlying +4%; GAAP EPS $4.79, adjusted EPS $6.59; adjusted segment EBITA margin 28.2%; operating cash flow $3,978m; free cash flow $3,535m. Q4 FY2026: net sales $5,201m (+7%); underlying orders +9% in the release table (8-K, 4 Nov 2026); this KB uses +9% — the CEO's quoted +14% is not reconciled in the release and may describe a narrower measure (a V2 search found no other account)
- FY2027 guidance
- Net and underlying sales growth ~5%; GAAP EPS ~$5.70, adjusted EPS ~$7.25; free cash flow $3.8–3.9bn; ~$3.8bn of capital return (~$2.5bn buybacks, ~$1.3bn dividends) (8-K)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- Founding (1890); Knight's planning process (1973–2000); the process-automation build (Rosemount, Fisher — from memory, verify); Network Power sold (2016); the rejected Rockwell pursuit (2017); AspenTech control (2022); Copeland sale (2022–23); National Instruments (2023); AspenTech buy-in (2025)
9 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
1890
Founding and Electric Motors
Founding
1973
Chuck Knight and the Planning Process
Production-system change / management system (planning and cost control)
1992
Fisher Controls and the Process Automation Build
Acquisition (building a process-automation business)
2016
Network Power Sale Vertiv
Divestment (corporate carve-out to private equity)
2017
Rockwell Pursuit Rejected
Acquisition attempt (unsolicited; failed)
2022
AspenTech Majority Stake
Acquisition (majority stake via contribution of businesses and cash) / technology bet
2022
Copeland Climate Technologies Sale
Divestment (majority carve-out to private equity, then full exit)
2023
National Instruments Acquisition
Acquisition (contested, then agreed)
2025
AspenTech Buy In
Acquisition of the minority (tender offer and merger)