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ST. LOUIS — Energizer Holdings Inc. plans to turn its Household Products and Personal Care divisions into two independent, publicly traded companies.
Energizer Holdings Inc. plans to turn its Household Products and Personal Care divisions into two independent, publicly traded companies.
The separation is planned as a tax-free spin-off to the company’s shareholders, officials said, and it is expected to be completed in the second half of the 2015 fiscal year.
The company said the move will create two strong, independent public companies with distinct brands, categories and corporate strategies.
The household products company, anchored by the Energizer and Eveready brands, will focus on batteries and portable lighting products. It should generate strong margins and significant cash flows, according to the company, which noted that the Household Products division reported annual revenue of about $1.9 billion in the trailing 12-month period ended March 31.
The personal care company will be a pure-play consumer products company with a stable of well-established brand names that includes Schick and Wilkinson Sword in wet shave; Edge and Skintimate in shave preparation; Playtex, Stayfree, Carefree and o.b. in feminine care; and Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic in sun care.
Energizer’s Personal Care division had annual revenue of around $2.6 billion in the trailing 12-month period ended March 31, adjusted on a pro-forma basis for the feminine care acquisition.
"Over the last three years, we have taken a number of important steps to enhance shareholder value, including executing a multiyear cost-reduction plan, improving working capital and initiating a dividend," said Energizer Holdings chief executive officer Ward Klein. "The Energizer board of directors and management team have continually explored opportunities to improve performance and increase long-term shareholder value and believe that separating the Household Products and Personal Care divisions is the next logical step to unlock even greater value for Energizer shareholders."
Klein added that the company’s working capital and cost-reduction efforts will continue throughout the separation process.
Upon completion of the separation, the stand-alone personal care company will be led by Klein as executive chairman and David Hatfield, currently president and CEO of Energizer Personal Care, as CEO.
The stand-alone household products company will be led by J. Patrick Mulcahy, currently chairman of Energizer Holdings, as executive chairman, and Alan Hoskins, currently president and CEO of Energizer Household Products, as CEO.
The company has retained Goldman, Sachs & Co. as financial adviser and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and Bryan Cave LLP as legal counsel to advise on the separation process.
