Were Campbell Soup Earnings Already Fully Priced In?

Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB | CPB Price Prediction) released its fiscal first-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Friday. The company said that it had $0.83 in earnings per share (EPS) and $2.24 billion in revenue. That compared with consensus estimates of $0.75 in EPS and $2.22 billion in revenue, as well as the $0.53 per share and $2.39 billion posted in the same period of last year.

During the quarter, organic net sales increased 17% from the prior year, driven by favorable volume in both Meals & Beverages and Snacks reflecting increased demand for at-home food consumption with the stay-at-home mandate.

Meals & Beverage segment sales increased 20% to $1.21 billion, driven primarily by gains across the U.S. retail business, including gains in soups, pasta sauces, V8 beverages, Campbell’s pasta, Pace Mexican sauces and Swanson canned poultry, as well as gains in Canada, partially offset by declines in foodservice.

Snacks segment sales increased 9% to $1.03 billion, driven primarily by volume gains reflecting increased demand of food purchases for at-home consumption, as well as base business performance.

Looking ahead to fiscal 2020, the company expects to see EPS in the range of $2.87 to $2.92 and net sales growth of 5.5% to 6.5%. Consensus estimates call for $2.85 in EPS and $8.6 billion in revenue for the full year.

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Mark Clouse, Campbell’s president and CEO, commented:

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have simplified our mission to keep our people safe, while meeting the urgent need for food and supporting the communities in which we operate. I am incredibly proud of how the entire Campbell organization has mobilized and want to thank our team, especially those on the front lines, for continuing to step up to ensure our food is readily available across North America.

Campbell Soup stock traded down nearly 3% at $50.65 Wednesday morning, in a 52-week range of $39.24 to $57.54. The consensus price target is $51.56.

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