General Mills Beats by a Penny; FY Guidance Still Soft

General Mills reported an 8.2% increase in fiscal Q1 earnings to $288.9 million, or $0.81/share, beating the Street by a penny. Revenues rose 7.4% to $3.07B, also ahead of estimates of $3B. However, General Mills maintained its full-year guidance, which remains below analyst expectations. General Mills forecasts full-year EPS of $3.39-3.43, compared to analyst projections of $3.46. Revenues are expected to grow in the low-single digits. Analysts see 4.3% y/y growth to $12.97B. First-quarter domestic sales rose 6.4% to $2.03B, while international sales climbed 19% to $599M. General Mills was helped by higher prices, and plans more price increases and improvements to operational efficiency, as it combats higher grain and dairy prices. The company said it repurchased 21M shares of common stock during the quarter at an average price of $58. Shares of General Mills were last up about 0.5% to $59.00 in pre-market trading, after gaining 1.5% to $58.67 on Tuesday.

Sources: Press release, Bloomberg, MarketWatch
Commentary: 100 Stocks to Offset Rising Food Prices • Jim Cramer's Take on GIS • General Mills Q4 EPS Misses By a Penny, Sales Top Estimates
Stocks/ETFs to watch: GIS. Competitors: DA, K, KFT. ETFs: PBJ, PWC, IYK

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