Earnings Preview: Honeywell International

Honeywell International (HON) is expected to report Q2 earnings before market open Friday, July 18, with a conference call scheduled for 8:00 am ET.

Guidance

Analysts are looking for EPS of 94c on revenue of $9.22B. The consensus range is 92c to 97c for EPS, and $9.07B to $9.46B for revenue, according to First Call. Honeywell gave guidance for the current fiscal year in May, expecting FY08 EPS of $3.70 to $3.80 vs. consensus of $3.79, and FY08 revenue of $36.8B to $37.4B vs. consensus of $37.22B.

Honeywell Aerospace announced on June 9, that it signed a definitive agreement to sell its Consumables Solutions business to B/E Aerospace (BEAV) for $1.05B, consisting of at least $800M in cash and the remainder in shares of B/E common stock. The transaction has received antitrust clearance and may close as soon as the end of July.

Analyst Views

Deutsche Banks reiterated its Buy rating for the company on July 10, and expects Honeywell to report Q2 EPS of 94c, in-line with consensus, and expects a strong margin performance to b6e positive for investor sentiment. The firm finds the risk/reward attractive at current levels.

Citigroup reiterated its Buy rating for the company and believes energy efficiency and environmental compliance support Honeywell's secular growth and they feel the stock is "exceptionally cheap" at current levels. The firm reiterates the company as its top pick and kept a $70 target on the stock.