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Hormel Foods Foodservice Growth: Is This a Key Earnings Lever?
ZACKS· 2025-12-31 15:45
Core Insights - Hormel Foods Corporation's Foodservice segment is a key earnings driver, showing strong top-line momentum with net sales increasing by 4% year over year and organic net sales rising by 6% in Q4 of fiscal 2025, despite a reported volume decline of 5% [1][8] Group 1: Sales Performance - Foodservice net sales reached $3.94 billion in fiscal 2025, accounting for approximately one-third of Hormel Foods' total revenues, indicating its significance in the overall earnings mix [4] - Growth was observed across higher-value categories such as customized solutions, branded bacon, pepperoni, premium prepared proteins, and the Jennie-O turkey portfolio, reflecting Hormel Foods' focus on protein-centric, menu-ready solutions [2][8] Group 2: Profitability and Challenges - The Foodservice segment generated a profit of $134.4 million in Q4, which represents a 12.9% decline year over year due to elevated commodity-driven input costs and the impact of a chicken-product recall [3][8] - The segment's profitability is sensitive to input cost volatility and operational disruptions, despite solid sales execution [3] Group 3: Market Position and Valuation - Hormel Foods holds a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold) and has seen its shares increase by 2.9% over the past month, outperforming the industry and broader Consumer Staples sector [5] - The company trades at a forward 12-month P/E ratio of 16.21, which is above the industry average of 12.42, indicating market expectations regarding its business stability [9] Group 4: Earnings Estimates - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Hormel Foods' earnings per share has been revised upward, with the current fiscal year estimate increasing by 6 cents to $1.46 and the next fiscal year estimate rising by 5 cents to $1.58 [12]