-= Scotts Miracle-Gro (SMG) reported earnings on Tue 6 Nov 2018 (b/o)

 Scotts Miracle-Gro misses by $0.09, misses on revs; guides FY19 EPS and rev just below consensus

• Reports Q4 (Sep) loss of $0.75 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.09 worse than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of ($0.66); revenues rose 15.1% year/year to $434 mln vs the $441.1 mln S&P Capital IQ Consensus. Sales in the U.S. Consumer segment decreased 2 percent in the quarter to $252.6 million due primarily to focused inventory productivity efforts with certain key retail accounts. The segment delivered segment profit of $5.3 million compared with a loss of $0.3 million a year earlier. Hawthorne reported sales of $152.2 million, a 65 percent increase from the same period a year ago, driven by acquisitions. Excluding acquisitions, sales decreased 15 percent due to declines in the North American hydroponic business partially offset by growth in the European professional greenhouse market and AeroGrow. Hawthorne reported a segment profit of $0.5 million in the quarter compared with $9.0 million a year earlier.
• Co issues downside guidance for FY19, sees EPS of $4.10-4.30 vs. $4.31 S&P Capital IQ Consensus; sees FY19 revs +10-11% to ~$2.93-2.96 bln vs. $2.97 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus. The guidance assumes the U.S. Consumer segment will grow 1 to 2 percent with the balance, ~9 percent, from Hawthorne. Within the Hawthorne segment, acquisitions are expected to contribute 8 percent on a company-wide basis. Flat gross margin.