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Mead Johnson Nutrition beats by $0.04, reports revs in-line; guides FY15 EPS below consensus
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.92 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.88; revenues rose 3.2% year/year to $1.09 bln vs the $1.1 bln consensus.
- Constant dollar sales increased 8%; 5% from price and 3% from volume. Foreign exchange adversely affected sales growth by 5%. Gross margin was lower than the prior year quarter due mainly to higher dairy costs and adverse foreign exchange. Earnings before interest and income taxes were also negatively impacted by unfavorable MTM adjustments due to updated actuarial assumptions. EBIT totaled $209.6 mln in Q4 of 2014, compared to $203.9 mln for the comparative period in 2013.
- "As we enter 2015, we face significant headwinds from a strengthening dollar. Approximately three quarters of our revenue is in foreign currencies while much of our cost base is dollar denominated. As a result, our earnings are somewhat exposed to currency fluctuations. Lower commodity costs will, however, allow us to improve gross margins and invest incrementally behind our brands."