UPDATE: J.P. Morgan Lowering Price Target On Newell Rubbermaid Inc.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is lowering its price target on shares of Newell Rubbermaid Inc. NWL to $17.50 from $21.50, but it is keeping its Overweight rating on shares. In a note to clients, J.P. Morgan writes, "Newell reduced guidance for Q2 and 2011 on Friday, possibly in advance of the announcement of a new CEO this week. While it seems odd that a 3-4% reduction in guidance would result in a double-digit percentage drop for a stock that was already getting pummeled, we believe it highlights the lack of confidence investors have in the business, particularly with 2H '11 numbers viewed as too high. Guidance is for earnings of $1.60-$1.67, but we are going below that guidance range. We point out that this still works out to MSD EPS growth. Despite the recent reductions in guidance, we reiterate our Overweight rating as we believe NWL is turning into a better company than in the past, which is not reflected at 8.5x our 2012 estimate." Shares of NWL closed at $14.97 on Friday.