Energizer Holdings, Inc. Announces Fiscal 2024 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results and Financial Outlook for Fiscal 2025

Financial Performance - Delivered fiscal 2024 Net Sales of $2,887.0 million, a decrease of 2.5% compared to the prior year [1][3] - Adjusted EBITDA for fiscal 2024 was $612.4 million, in line with the company's outlook [1] - Adjusted EPS for fiscal 2024 was $3.32, an increase of 7% on an adjusted basis [1] - Operating cash flow for fiscal 2024 was $429.6 million, with free cash flow representing 11.7% of Net Sales [1] Gross Margin and Cost Management - Gross margin for fiscal 2024 was 38.3%, with an adjusted gross margin of 40.9%, up 190 basis points from the prior year [1][7] - Project Momentum initiatives contributed approximately $59 million in savings, driving gross margin improvement [8] - SG&A expenses for fiscal 2024 were $473.1 million, or 16.4% of net sales, up from 15.5% in the prior year [9] Segment Performance - Battery & Lights segment net sales for fiscal 2024 were $2,259.5 million, a decrease of 3.6% compared to the prior year [41] - Auto Care segment net sales for fiscal 2024 were $627.5 million, an increase of 2.1% compared to the prior year [41] - Battery & Lights segment profit for fiscal 2024 was $554.8 million, an increase of 0.6% compared to the prior year [41] - Auto Care segment profit for fiscal 2024 was $94.1 million, an increase of 25.5% compared to the prior year [41] Capital Allocation and Debt Management - The company reduced net leverage to 4.9 times in fiscal 2024, driven by $200 million of debt paydown and Adjusted EBITDA growth [1] - Net debt decreased by $138.5 million in fiscal 2024, with net debt to Adjusted EBITDA at 4.9 times as of September 30, 2024 [16] - The company completed two acquisitions in fiscal 2024, totaling $22.2 million [16] Financial Outlook for Fiscal 2025 - The company expects fiscal 2025 organic revenue growth of 1% to 2% [1] - Adjusted EBITDA for fiscal 2025 is expected to be in the range of $625 million to $645 million [1] - Adjusted EPS for fiscal 2025 is expected to be in the range of $3.45 to $3.65 [1] - For the first quarter of fiscal 2025, the company expects organic revenue growth of 2% to 3% and Adjusted EPS in the range of $0.60 to $0.65 [18]