Energizer shares slide 13% after earnings miss

Energizer Holdings Inc. shares slid 13% Tuesday, after the battery and lighting company posted weaker-than-expected earnings for its fiscal third quarter. St. Louis-based Energizer said it had net income of $3.0 million, or 4 cents a share, in the quarter, down from $23.8 million, or 39 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 37 cents, below the 46 cents FactSet consensus. Sales rose to $647.2 million from $392.8 million, also below the FactSet consensus of $674 million. The company said it still expects fiscal 2019 adjusted EPS of $2.90 to $3.00, which compares with a current FactSet consensus of $2.93. The forecast does not include any estimates of benefits from storm activity, which tends to lead to a spike in sales of batteries. The company expects fiscal 2019 sales of $2.48 billion to $2.50 billion, compared with a FactSet consensus $2.53 billion. The stock has fallen 27% in 2019, while the S&P 500 has gained 14%.

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