Investors Trust McCormick Again; Should They?
In the late 2010s, among major, mature manufacturers, spice maker McCormick was far and away the most expensive stock in the packaged food space.
Company Earnings Archive
Investors Fear Kroger Is Returning To The Old Normal
Kroger stock has performed well in 2024, rising 9% so far this year. But on a two-year basis, the stock has barely budged and shares have faded 15% from early April levels. The reaction to first-quarter earnings last week further highlights the uncertainty: Kroger stock jumped in early trading but finished the day down a little over 3%.
Missing the Mark – Private Label is Failing at Target
Everything is cyclical. There’s a pendulum at play for any brand investing heavily in the private-label game – as more house brands populate shelves with similar names and cheaper prices than their national brand counterparts, public perception of the parent company may swing along with the pendulum; in other words, some consumers may begin to question what they’re compromising when their carts are full of private-label goods instead of the national brands they may have been buying last week, last quarter, or last year. So swings the pendulum as a blade of commerce.
Dollar Stores Have Reached An Inflection Point
The performance of dollar store stocks suggested investors believed Walmart’s best days were behind it. They were wrong.
Private Label Drives Summer Growth
For many major retailers, the latest quarterly results tell a familiar tale: consumers are fed up with high prices, spending less, and commodifying their loyalty by taking the best deal right now, regardless of whose logo adorns their grocery bag or shopping cart.
Walmart Earnings Seem Optimistic for The Food Industry. Its Strategy Might Not Be
Retail giant Walmart is hardly moving like a lumbering incumbent, but rather at a pace more like that of a startup. That seems a terrifying prospect for the rest of the industry, said FI’s resident stock analyst.
The Surprising Strength in WK Kellogg Stock
What WK Kellogg has done in its first three quarters as a standalone business is both an important step in the right direction and a validation of a spin-off strategy, wrote FI’s resident stock analyst.
McDonald’s Execs Promise to be Price Sensitive in Q2, as ‘All Income Cohorts Are Seeking Value’
McDonald’s Execs Promise to be Price Sensitive in Q2, as ‘All Income Cohorts Are Seeking Value’
From Niche to Necessity: Gluten-Free Products Continue to Experience Surge
The global gluten-free products market continues to show noteworthy growth. with brands such as Mightylicious cracked the code.
Two Sides of Hello Fresh
As a business, it’s difficult to see Hello Fresh as anything but a massive success. And yet, despite the success of the business, Hello Fresh stock has been a terrible investment.
How Hormel and JM Smucker Are Beating the Market
It’s not hard to understand why these companies have found success in a challenging environment. These are comfort food manufacturers (among other things!) whose identities, infrastructure, and revenue are built upon foods people reach for when they’re feeling down, feeling squeezed, or both.
Appetite for Reduction: GLP-1 Drugs Fuel Grocery Decrease
The market for GLP-1 drugs is expected to reach $100 billion by 2030. Manufacturers and brands who want a piece of the low-sugar pie, so to speak, will have to offer the same.
Cereal Manufacturers Desperate to Boost Sales
Americans are turning away from breakfast cereal, and that’s got cereal manufacturers seeking fresh innovation to bring consumers back to their bowls and the breakfast table.
How Post Holdings Claimed the Best Packaged Food Stock in the Market
Since its spin-off from Ralcorp, Post has spent over $10 billion on acquisitions. It has taken impairment changes relative to acquired assets of less than $300 million. Meanwhile, off a cereal business worth about $2 billion, Post and Bellring are now worth over $20 billion combined (including the respective companies’ debt).
PepsiCo Execs Express Optimism in Earnings Call
PepsiCo’s latest earnings call revealed net revenue of $91.5 billion for the fiscal year and $27.9 billion in Q4.
Analysis: Ozempic Likely to Impact Snack Manufacturers’ Bottom Line
The recent rise of Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs started with blowout results that drove shares of their manufacturers higher, then wound up cascading across seemingly disparate sectors. In 2023, Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of …
Analysis: Automation Could Cure Labor Shortages in Manufacturing
Automation offers companies the opportunity to attract talent with the right skills and assign those skills to the most appropriate areas of the business.
Rash of Restaurant Bankruptcies Festers
Fast-food businesses that focus on creating a positive workplace culture, improving the overall employee experience, and nurturing strong employer-employee relationships are better positioned to attract and retain top talent.
Walmart Commits to Reducing Food Waste
In an era of increased greenwashing and many companies abandoning once-ambitious ESG plans altogether, Walmart appears to be making real strides toward helping reduce food waste, solve food deserts, and burnishing its worldwide brand a little more.
Analysis: Why History Colors Campbell’s Sovos Deal
Across the 1980s and 1990s, Campbell Soup was one of the best stocks not only in the food industry, but the entire market. Including dividends, CPB returned 2,700%, or about 18%, on an annualized basis. …
The Grimace Effect – How Marketing & Memes Drive Sales
Audacious, sublime, organic – these are the hallmarks of profit for brands wise enough to be confident in their values and lucky enough to thread the needle between quality-controlled seriousness and edge-of-the-internet frivolity.
Costco Clamps Down on Membership Abuse
It’s unusual for a retailer to make it more difficult for consumers to shop at its stores. But membership fees are the key to Costco’s business. In fiscal 2022 (ending August 28), membership fees accounted for 54% of the company’s operating profit; the figure has risen to 58% in the first three quarters of fiscal 2023.
Meat Producers Look For A Bottom — And For Answers
The cycle has turned against meat producers with a perhaps unprecedented vengeance. In response, investors and industry participants face two key questions. First, when does the cycle turn? More importantly, what can meat producers do …
COLUMN: For Tyson and JBS, the Problem is Not Just the Cycle
Input costs are up, prices are falling, volumes are down. It’s an unprecedented environment.
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COLUMN: Resilient Consumers Aren’t Going Anywhere – Yet
With price hikes easing and food company earnings strong, it appears resilient consumers aren’t going anywhere – yet.
Are Ingredient Suppliers Signaling Trouble Ahead?
One of the biggest stories in food manufacturing in 2022 was the ability of producers to take pricing. Despite price increases usually in the range of 15% year-over-year (if not higher), major manufacturers were able …
Texas Roadhouse: A Blueprint for Success
Texas Roadhouse is defying the odds and welcoming more guests than ever, even as other establishments have been forced to scale back.
Weakened Chicken Demand Pummels Tyson
Tyson Foods’ first quarter earnings missed Wall Street estimates as improved beef and pork supplies weakened demand for chicken, the company said. And chief financial officer John R. Tyson said the next quarter also will …
Judging the ‘Pivots’ in Packaged Foods
J.M. Smucker and Campbell Soup both stand out in their attempts to diversify from fading legacy packaged food products.
Analysis: Beyond Meat Earnings Indicate Alt-Meat Category in Trouble
Beyond Meat reported third quarter earnings on Wednesday afternoon, and they were disastrous. Revenue declined 22.5% year-over-year … and that wasn’t even the worst news.
Recession Still Looms as a Risk to F&B Stocks
Many investors believe that food and beverage stocks are safe places in which to hide when the stock market turns towards recession. That belief centers on a simple thesis: people still have to eat. The …
Investors See Tough Times Ahead for Fast Casuals
It’s difficult to project how the fast-casual industry will perform in a recession. The current version of the industry hasn’t really seen one. To be sure, the fast-casual concept predates the financial crisis of the …
Will AI Ordering Go Mainstream at Restaurants?
In response to labor shortages, some restaurants are turning to AI-powered bots that answer phones and communicate with customers.
Amid Labor Shortage, Gen Z Demanding ‘EWA’ Pay
Companies like McDonald’s are allowing workers to access hourly pay on demand in the hopes of shoring up the ongoing labor shortage.
Alternative Seafood Investments Are on the Rise
Investment in plant-based, fermented or cell-based “alternative seafood” amounted to $178.2 million between January and mid-July this year, as interest in the sector continued to grow. (Fish Farming Expert, July 28) In fact, the alternative …
CASE STUDY: How Pan’s Mushroom Jerky Scaled During COVID
Looking ahead, Pan’s plans to stay true to its core values of reducing meat consumption by making nutritious foods from mushrooms.