Energizer (NYSE:ENR) Upgraded to Equal Weight by Morgan Stanley

Energizer (NYSE:ENR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $33.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 13.85% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on ENR. Barclays cut their target price on Energizer from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Energizer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.00.

Energizer Stock Performance

ENR opened at $28.99 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of 22.47 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.36. Energizer has a twelve month low of $26.92 and a twelve month high of $37.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $28.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.51.

Energizer (NYSE:ENR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. Energizer had a net margin of 3.21% and a return on equity of 123.29%. The firm had revenue of $716.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $710.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. Energizer’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Energizer will post 3.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energizer

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new position in shares of Energizer in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Energizer by 35.3% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Energizer in the first quarter valued at $64,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Energizer by 35.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Energizer by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. 93.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Energizer

Energizer Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes household batteries, specialty batteries, and lighting products worldwide. It offers lithium, alkaline, carbon zinc, nickel metal hydride, zinc air, and silver oxide batteries under the Energizer, Eveready, and Rayovac brands; primary, rechargeable, specialty, and hearing aid batteries; and handheld, headlights, lanterns, and area lights, as well as flashlights under the Hard Case, Dolphin, and WeatherReady brands.