Heinz Earnings Drop on Tax Change

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Heinz's Net Profit Drops 6% On Higher Tax Rate [Wall Street Journal]

Summary: H.J. Heinz Company reported a 6% drop in earnings for fiscal Q2, blaming a higher tax rate. Net income fell to $0.57/share from $0.60/share last year. U.S. sales were up 5.4%, sales in Europe were down 0.8%, and Asia Pacific had 6% sales growth. Heinz said it expects to earn $2.35-$2.39/share on the year -- the first time its given a guidance range. Heinz shares, which went nowhere for years, recently jumped on the tails of a highly-publicized proxy fight between it and activist billionaire Nelson Peltz, which resulted in shareholders electing Peltz and his ally Michael F. Weinstein to the company's board. Peltz was pushing for an aggressive growth plan including deep spending cuts and share buybacks. Shares closed yesterday at $43.97.
Related links: Commentary: Jim Cramer's Take on HNZ. Conference call transcripts: Previous transcripts
Potentially impacted stocks and ETFs: H.J. Heinz Company (HNZ), Campbell Soup Co. (CPB), ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) • ETFs: PowerShares Dynamic Food & Beverage (PBJ)

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