Foodservice

Hormel Foods reports record $2.5B sales for Q1 2021

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February 18, 2021

Hormel Foods Corp. reported record net sales of $2.5 billion for the for the 2021 first quarter ending Jan. 24, 2021, up 3% over the $2.38 billion for the quarter ending Jan. 26, 2020, according to an earnings release.

Net earnings dipped from $242.0 million from last year's quarter to $222.4 million for this year's quarter.

Both basic and diluted earnings per share fell 9% from 45 cents to 41 cents.

For the U.S. business, retail net sales increased 13%, deli sales rose 7% while foodservices sales, which continue to face pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic, fell 17%. International sales increased 9%.

"We delivered record sales as all four segments generated top-line growth," Jim Snee, chairman of the board, president and CEO, said in the release. "Brands such as Spam, Skippy, Hormel, Black Label, Applegate, Columbus and Jennie-O all delivered exceptional growth."

"Our retail businesses in refrigerated foods and Jennie-O Turkey store also showed earnings growth, but declines across our foodservice businesses and incremental supply chain costs related to the pandemic negatively impacted profitability," he said.

Snee also said the company has been encouraged by its recent acquisition of the Planters business from Kraft Heinz.

"We expect a recovery in our foodservice business, given the acceleration in shipments during recent weeks," he said. "We are closely watching the foodservice industry trends during the recovery and preparing for rapid changes in demand."

Shares traded at $47.76 today against a 52-week range of $38.24-$52.44.

Shares rallied 2.2% in premarket trading, according to Marketwatch.

The FactSet consensus for earnings per share was 40 cents for the quarter, while sales surpassed the FactSet consensus of $2.37 billion.

For fiscal 2021, the company expects EPS of $1.70 to $1.82 and revenue of $9.7 billion to $10.3 billion, compared to the FactSet consensus for EPS of $1.72 and revenue of $9.89 billion.

For an update on how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting convenience services, click here.