According to an Associated Press article, Hormel Foods Corp. has reported a first-quarter profit of $241.4 million. On a per-share basis, the Austin, Minnesota-based company said it had profits of 44 cents.
The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of four analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 43 cents per share. The maker of Spam, Dinty Moore stew and other foods posted revenue of $2.36 billion in the period, which did not meet Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $2.4 billion.
In a separate report, it was unveiled that Hormel has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its CytoSport business to PepsiCo for $465 million in cash. This includes the Muscle Milk brand that was part of Hormel's $450 million acquisition in 2014.
Hormel expects full-year earnings to be $1.77 to $1.91 per share, with revenue in the range of $9.7 billion to $10.2 billion. Hormel shares have increased one percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has increased 11 percent. The stock has increased 28 percent in the last 12 months.
