-- Newell Brands (NWL) raised its 2026 sales outlook, crediting tax refunds, operational improvements, and better-than-expected consumer demand.
The company now expects full-year net sales to range from flat to up 2%, compared with its prior view of down 1% to up 1%. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect $7.23 billion.
Newell also lifted the lower end of its 2026 earnings guidance to $0.56 from $0.54, keeping the upper end at $0.60. Analysts expect $0.56.
"We believe tariff help will offset about 50% of the previously mentioned incremental commodity hurt, with the remainder being offset by higher levels of productivity savings and targeted price and promotion adjustments where necessary," CEO Christopher Peterson said the earnings call, according to a FactSet transcript.
Newell shares rose 9.4% in Friday trading and have gained 20% this year.
The company said tax refunds are effectively neutralizing the pressure from rising fuel and energy prices.
"Tax refunds, much of which came into the market in March and April, do appear to be offsetting the consumer impact from gas and energy," Peterson said.
First-quarter revenue fell to $1.55 billion from $1.57 billion a year earlier, beating Wall Street's estimate of $1.51 billion. The loss widened to $0.05 per share from $0.01, compared with the consensus for a $0.09 loss.
Consumer spending in key categories outperformed the company's expectations, and growth among higher-income shoppers helped offset softness in lower-income segments, Peterson said.
"We experienced better-than-expected consumer demand for our products driven by improving point-of-sale and market share trends," he said.
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