Newell Rubbermaid Q1 Net Profit Down, EPS Flat; Backs FY14 Goals; Ups Dividend

(RTTNews) - Consumer and commercial products company Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NWL) Friday said its first-quarter 2014 reported net income slid to $52.9 million, from $54.2 million a year before. On the other hand, reported earnings per share were $0.19 this quarter, same as the prior-year period.

According to the company, lower restructuring costs and the positive impact from a lower share count were offset by a $38.7 million monetary asset devaluation charge resulting from the adoption of the SICAD I Venezuelan Bolivar exchange rate and the $11.0 million charge reflecting the costs associated with the harness buckle recall issue.

On a normalized basis, quarterly net income amounted to $98.1 million, compared with $102.1 million in the prior year, while normalized earnings per share remained flat year-on-year at $0.35 as 60 basis points of normalized gross margin increase and a lower share count were offset by the loss of sales momentum on Baby due to the harness buckle recall and the sluggish performance of the U.S.-centric Home Solutions segment as a result of a weather-related slowdown in U.S. retailer point-of-sale results. On average, 16 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings per share of $0.32 for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

The Atlanta, Georgia-based maker of Sharpie pens and Rubbermaid containers clocked $1.23 billion of net sales in the quarter, down 0.7 percent from the prior year's $1.24 billion. Analysts estimated revenues of $1.24 billion for the quarter. However, core sales, excluding the impact of changes in foreign currency, went up by 0.7 percent.

Looking ahead to fiscal 2014, the company confirmed its core sales growth guidance of 3 - 4 percent, operating margin improvement of up to 40 basis points, normalized earnings per share of $1.94 - $2.00 and operating cash flow of $600 million - $650 million. Street currently is looking for full-year earnings of $1.98 per share on revenues of $5.83 billion.

Further, the firm announced a 13 percent increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share.