Edgewell Personal Care (NYSE:EPC) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Shares of Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE:EPC - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $30.02, but opened at $26.91. Edgewell Personal Care shares last traded at $25.13, with a volume of 227,710 shares changing hands.

The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.03). Edgewell Personal Care had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 9.29%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share.

Edgewell Personal Care Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Edgewell Personal Care's payout ratio is 32.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on EPC shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Edgewell Personal Care from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays reduced their target price on Edgewell Personal Care from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $48.00 to $43.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $35.71.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Edgewell Personal Care

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Edgewell Personal Care by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 7,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Edgewell Personal Care in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,474,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Edgewell Personal Care by 13.5% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 542,525 shares of the company's stock worth $16,932,000 after acquiring an additional 64,722 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Edgewell Personal Care by 9.0% during the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 13,253 shares of the company's stock worth $414,000 after acquiring an additional 1,089 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in Edgewell Personal Care by 24.1% in the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares during the period. 91.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Edgewell Personal Care Trading Down 16.5 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $30.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 2.06. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.65 and a beta of 0.91.

About Edgewell Personal Care

Edgewell Personal Care Company is a manufacturer and marketer of personal care products in the wet shave, sun and skin care, feminine care and infant care categories. As of September 30, 2016, the Company had a portfolio of over 25 brands. It manages its business in four segments: Wet Shave, Sun and Skin Care, Feminine Care and All Other.

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