Edgewell Personal Care Company (NYSE: EPC) reported Q4 EPS of $1.00, $0.03 worse than the analyst estimate of $1.03. Revenue for the quarter came in at $564.9 million versus the consensus estimate of $588.28 million.

Executive Summary

• Net sales on a reported basis were $564.9 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, a decrease of 7.5% when compared to the prior year quarter, and $2,298.4 million for the full year, a decrease of 2.7% compared to the prior year. Organic net sales were down 8.4% for the quarter and 2.8% for the full year. (Organic net sales exclude sales growth from the Bulldog acquisition and the impact of currency fluctuations.)
• GAAP net loss for the quarter was $148.4 million ($2.61 per share) and GAAP net earnings for the year were $5.7 million ($0.10 per share), including a non-cash intangible asset pre-tax impairment charge of $319.0 million.
• Adjusted Earnings Per Share were $1.00 for the quarter and $3.97 for the full year.
• The Company delivered net cash flow from operating activities of $296 million for the full year.
• The Company provided its financial outlook for fiscal 2018.

Full Fiscal Year 2018 Financial Outlook

For fiscal 2018, reported net sales are expected to be generally consistent with the prior year, including an approximate 150 basis-point increase from positive foreign currency translation effects (based on spot exchange rates as of October 19, 2017) and a 50 basis-point decrease from the Gloves divestiture, net of acquisitions. The Company's outlook reflects an assumption of continued category declines and competitive intensity in Wet Shave, as well as on-going declines in Feminine Care net sales.

The Company\'s outlook for GAAP EPS for fiscal 2018 is in the range of $4.00 to $4.20, and includes an estimated $16 million pre-tax gain from the Gloves divestiture. The outlook for Adjusted EPS is in the range of $3.80 to $4.00. Adjusted operating income margin as a percent of net sales is anticipated to expand by 20 to 25 basis points. Planned savings and efficiency initiatives, including the Company's Zero-Based Spending program, will be mostly reinvested into marketing spend and continued investment in the Company's strategic growth initiatives. The planned savings and efficiency initiatives includes the Company's Zero-Based Spending initiatives, anticipated to drive $25 - $30 million in net savings in fiscal 2018, and well as incremental savings from Restructuring projects.

The effective tax rate for the fiscal year is now estimated to be in the range of 24% to 26%.

In fiscal 2018, we anticipate that net sales and earnings performance will not be uniform by quarter, largely due to the timing of product launches, investments and A&P phasing. In the first half of the fiscal year, we anticipate that both organic net sales and adjusted EPS will decline as compared to the comparable period in the prior fiscal year.

The Company anticipates that fiscal 2018 free cash flow will be above 100% of GAAP net earnings.

GUIDANCE:

Edgewell Personal Care Company sees FY2018 EPS of $3.80-$4.00, versus the consensus of $4.13.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Edgewell Personal Care Company (EPC) click here.