Frozen food maker Conagra Brands' Q1 adj EPS rises

Overview

• US packaged food maker's fiscal Q1 net sales fell 1.4% year-over-year

• Adjusted EPS for fiscal Q1 rose 5.1% year-over-year to $0.41

• Company reaffirmed its fiscal 2027 guidance

Outlook

• Conagra reaffirms fiscal 2027 organic net sales change of (3)% to (1)% vs fiscal 2026

• Company expects fiscal 2027 adjusted operating margin of 10.0% to 10.5%

• Conagra sees fiscal 2027 adjusted EPS between $1.40 and $1.50

Result Drivers

• LOWER SALES VOLUMES - Co said organic net sales declined 1.1% due to a 2.1% drop in volume, partially offset by a 1.0% positive impact from price/mix

• COST OF GOODS SOLD INFLATION - Co said higher productivity and tariff refunds were more than offset by cost of goods sold inflation and unfavorable operating leverage

• HIGHER EQUITY EARNINGS - Co said equity method investment earnings increased 71.8% due to favorable market conditions and effective management through wheat market volatility

Company press release:

Key Details

Analyst Coverage

• The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 1 "strong buy" or "buy", 12 "hold" and 5 "sell" or "strong sell"

• The average consensus recommendation for the food processing peer group is "hold"

• Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Conagra Brands, Inc. is $14.00, about 0.9% below its September 29 closing price of $14.13

• The stock recently traded at 10 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 8 three months ago

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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)