Newell Brands Receives a Buy from Wells Fargo

In a report released today, Bonnie Herzog from Wells Fargo reiterated a Buy rating on Newell Brands (NYSE: NWL). The company’s shares closed yesterday at $26.69, close to its 52-week low of $23.85.

Herzog noted:

“We reiterate Outperform rating. NWL Q1 EPS Well Ahead on Taxes: NWL reported 1Q18 normalized EPS of $0.34 (flat y/y), well ahead of our/consensus estimate $0.28/$0.26. Core sales growth was down ­3.5% vs. our ­2.3% estimate. Gross margin was 33.3% (­110bps y/y) and +30bps ahead of our estimate. SG&A was 24.6% (+80bps y/y), but +110bps above our expectations, driving EBIT margin of 8.7% (below our +9.4% estimate). Overall, operating items were $0.06 below our est, with taxes driving the $0.06 beat vs. our estimates. 2018 EPS Guidance Reiterated: Core sales flat to down low single digits (vs. prior ”growth”), normalized EPS of $2.65­ $2.85 (vs. our/consensus $2.67/$2.66), and operating cash flow of $1.15B­$1.45B, with cash flow and EPS to come in at the low­end of the range (including a $0.07­$0.10 EPS hit from Toys ‘R Us).”

According to TipRanks.com, Herzog is a 4-star analyst with an average return of 7.6% and a 71.2% success rate. Herzog covers the Consumer Goods sector, focusing on stocks such as The Estée Lauder Companies Inc, Edgewell Personal Care, and Colgate-Palmolive.

Newell Brands has an analyst consensus of Hold, with a price target consensus of $28.40.

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The company has a one-year high of $55.08 and a one-year low of $23.85. Currently, Newell Brands has an average volume of 8.72M.

Based on the recent corporate insider activity of 38 insiders, corporate insider sentiment is positive on the stock. This means that over the past quarter there has been an increase of insiders buying their shares of NWL in relation to earlier this year.

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Newell Brands, Inc. engages in the manufacture, marketing, and sale of consumer and commercial products. It operates through the following segments: Writing, Home Solutions, Tools, Commercial Products, Baby & Parenting, Branded Consumables, Consumer Solutions, Outdoor Solutions, and Process Solutions.