Topic: How To Invest

Wall Street Stock Forecaster Hotline – Friday, October 8, 2021

Article Excerpt

CONAGRA BRANDS INC., $33.72, New York symbol CAG, is still a buy. Through your shares, you tap the maker of some of North America’s most popular food brands. They include Chef Boyardee canned pasta, Hunt’s tomato sauce, Orville Redenbacher popcorn and Reddi-wip whipped cream. The company’s very strong sales last year continue to revert to pre-pandemic levels as more people eat meals outside of the home. Conagra’s overall sales in its fiscal 2022 first quarter, ended August 29, 2021, fell 1.0%, to $2.65 billion from $2.69 billion a year earlier. Despite that drop, the latest sales still beat the consensus forecast of $2.531 billion. If you exclude the businesses that Conagra recently sold as well as foreign exchange rates, sales declined 0.4%. That reflects a 2.0% drop in volume, offset by a 1.6% rise in prices. Disregarding costs related to a cost-cutting plan and other unusual items, overall earnings in the quarter fell 30.2%, to $240.5 million from $344.4 million. Conagra spent $50.0 million…