(Updated - October 20, 2020 7:11 AM EDT)

(Update corrects EPS)

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) reported Q1 EPS of $1.63, better than the analyst estimate of $1.41. Revenue for the quarter came in at $19.32 billion versus the consensus estimate of $18.24 billion.

“We delivered another strong quarter of organic sales growth, core earnings per share and cash returned to shareowners, enabling us to increase our outlook for fiscal year results,” said David Taylor, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our near-term priorities continue to be employee health and safety, maximizing availability of P&G products for consumers around the world, and helping society meet the challenges of the COVID crisis. We remain firmly focused on executing our strategies of superiority, productivity, constructive disruption and improving P&G’s organization and culture to deliver balanced top-line and bottom-line growth along with strong cash generation.”

Fiscal Year 2021 Guidance

P&G raised its outlook for fiscal 2021 all-in sales growth from a range of one to three percent to a range of three to four percent versus the prior fiscal year. The revised range includes an estimated one percent negative impact from foreign exchange. The Company raised its outlook for organic sales growth from a range of two to four percent to a range of four to five percent.

The Company said it now expects fiscal 2021 GAAP diluted net earnings per share growth in a range of four to nine percent versus fiscal 2020 GAAP EPS of $4.96. GAAP EPS guidance now includes non-core charges in the range of $0.15 to $0.20 per share from the early debt retirement project that was initiated earlier this month. P&G raised guidance for core earnings per share growth from a range of three to seven percent to a range of five to eight percent versus fiscal 2020 core EPS of $5.12. The Company said its current outlook includes headwinds of approximately $325 million after-tax from foreign exchange impacts and $50 million after-tax from higher freight costs. The outlook also includes an estimated $150 million after tax headwind for the combined impacts of higher interest expense and lower interest income. These headwinds should be partially offset by approximately $175 million after-tax benefit from lower commodity costs.

The Company is not able to reconcile its forward-looking non-GAAP cash flow measure without unreasonable efforts because the Company cannot predict the timing and amounts of discrete cash items, such as acquisitions, divestitures, or impairments, which could significantly impact GAAP results. The Company estimates fiscal 2021 adjusted free cash flow productivity to be around 95%.

P&G expects to pay approximately $8 billion in dividends in fiscal 2021. The Company increased its outlook for common stock repurchase from a range of $6 billion to $8 billion to a range of $7 billion to $9 billion in fiscal 2021. Combined, P&G now plans to return $15 billion to $17 billion of cash to shareholders in this fiscal year.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Procter & Gamble (PG) click here.