Energizer Holdings, Inc.

No revenue or reported EPS figures were stated in the prepared remarks or Q&A. Management said gross margin has improved more than 430 basis points from first-quarter levels and expects fourth-quarter gross margin to be north of 40%, with Q4 adjusted EPS growth of 25% at the midpoint. Organic growth was delivered across both Batteries & Lights and Auto Care in the third quarter, but the back-half outlook was reduced from about 4% organic growth to roughly flat to up 1% because battery-category trends softened by roughly 200 to 300 basis points versus prior expectations. Management also said pricing was a headwind in Q3, should be neutral to slightly positive in Q4, and that the company expects strong free cash flow generation and meaningful debt reduction.

Mark LaVigne emphasized that Energizer is focused on strengthening earnings power, generating strong free cash flow, and improving the balance sheet. He framed the weaker outlook as primarily a category issue, not a company-specific one, saying the business is gaining share, expanding distribution, launching innovation, and outperforming the battery category. His tone was confident and steady, with repeated emphasis that the company’s margin recovery, portfolio quality, and financial flexibility are improving.

John Drabik said the company has done a good job taking costs out of the system and pointed to better gross margins than at the start of the year. He said Q4 gross margin should be in the low 40s and described it as a cleaner number, noting there will be no IEEPA credits in the quarter. He also said Momentum-related cash costs should be significantly reduced going forward, CapEx should come down by about 1% of net sales, or $30 million, and Energizer has already collected about $11 million of IEEPA tariffs, with $53 million still booked as a future cash source.

Analysts focused on why guidance was cut, whether category weakness reflected inventory issues, and whether the slowdown was structural. Management said the main driver was softer consumer demand in batteries, not retailer inventory, and said destocking earlier in the year should not become an additional meaningful headwind. They also said there is no structural issue in the category, that devices and usage remain healthy, and that Q4 pricing should be neutral to slightly positive. When asked about competitors’ declines, management declined to comment directly and said it is focused on winning distribution the right way.