Energizer Holdings Earnings Preview

Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR  ) will look to avoid missing estimates for the consecutive quarter when its earnings are released. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Wednesday, July 27. Energizer Holdings (Energizer) is a manufacturer and marketer of primary batteries, portable lighting and personal care products in the wet shave, skin care, feminine care and infant care categories.

What analysts say:

• Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts strongly back Energizer Holdings, with 12 of 15 rating it a buy and the remainder rating it a hold. Analysts like Energizer Holdings better than competitor Kimberly-Clark overall. Analysts still rate the stock a Moderate buy, but they are a bit more wary about it compared to three months ago.
• Revenue Forecasts: On average, analysts predict $1.18 billion in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 9.3% from the year-ago quarter.
• Wall Street Earnings Expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $1.26 per share. Estimates range from $1.13 to $1.32.

What our community says:
CAPS All Stars are solidly behind the stock, with 97.3% giving it an "outperform" rating. The community at large concurs with the All Stars with 93.7% awarding it a rating of "outperform." Fools have embraced Energizer Holdings, though the message boards have been quiet lately with only 95 posts in the past 30 days. Even with a robust four out of five stars, Energizer Holdings' CAPS rating falls a little short of the community's upbeat outlook.

Management:
Energizer Holdings' profit has risen year over year by an average of 25.9%. The company's revenue has now risen for two straight quarters. The company's gross margin shrank by 2.3 percentage points in the last quarter. Revenue rose 10.7% while cost of sales rose 15.6% to $564.2 million from a year earlier.

Now let's look at how efficient management is at running the business. Traditionally, margins represent the efficiency with which companies capture portions of sales dollars. The following table shows gross, operating, and net margins over the past four quarters.

Quarter	Q2	Q1	Q4	Q3
Gross Margin	45.5%	47.1%	46.6%	48.1%
Operating Margin	8.8%	16.6%	10%	15.2%
Net Margin	3.8%	9.4%	8%	9.7%

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