Edgewell primed for takeover bid

Article Excerpt

EDGEWELL PERSONAL CARE $74 (New York symbol EPC; Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 57.4 million; Market cap: $4.2 billion; Takeover Target Rating: Highest; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www. edgewell.com) began trading in July 2015 after Energizer Holdings, Inc. split into Edgewell and battery maker Energizer (symbol ENR on New York—see box below). We think Edgewell has strong takeover prospects. The company’s product range includes shaving products (60% of sales) sold under brand names such as Schick, Edge and Wilkinson Sword; its sun and skin-care products (18%) include the brands Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat; its feminine care brands (16%) include Playtex, Carefree, o.b. and Stayfree; and its infant care lines (6%) are sold under the Playtex, Diaper Genie and Wet Ones brands. For the year ended September 30, 2015, Edgewell lost $4.78 a share on revenue of $2.42 billion. Excluding writedowns and spinoff costs, the company made $2.80 a share. Sales fell 2.4% in fiscal 2016, to $2.36 billion, but excluding…