What happened
Shares of Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (SPB -1.86%), a supplier of consumer batteries, residential locksets, and personal care products, among other products, are up 9.4% as of 11:45 a.m. EDT Thursday after the company released fiscal 2018 third-quarter results.
So what
Net sales checked in at $945.5 million during the third quarter, a 9.6% gain compared to the prior year. Excluding $4.9 million in favorable foreign exchange and acquisition sales of $14.5 million, organic net sales jumped 7.3%, compared to the prior year. Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations checked in at $1.76 during the third quarter, a 23.9% gain compared to the prior year, and ahead of analysts' estimates calling for $1.57, per analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research.
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"Led by double-digit growth in our HHI and Auto Care businesses and a strong top line in Home & Garden, we reported our highest organic sales growth rate in many years in the third quarter, our largest fiscal quarter, as we experienced solid market demand for our brands and benefited from markedly reduced order backlogs in Kansas and Dayton," said David Maura, Chairman and CEO of Spectrum Brands Holdings, in a press release.
Now what
The third quarter was a step forward for Spectrum Brands, especially after a rough spring, but management acknowledged it can work to improve the bottom line by investing in cost efficiencies over the next 12 months. Management also noted that with increasing operating momentum, the company is on track to deliver better performance during the last quarter of the fiscal year, reiterating fiscal year 2018 adjusted-EBITDA guidance between $600 million to $617 million, and adjusted free cash flow between $484 million to $505 million.
