Campbell’s brands will drive its growth

Article Excerpt

In 2018, Campbell Soup shifted its focus to its most-profitable products. A key acquisition also gave it a big presence in the fast-growing snack food market. These moves paid off as the COVID-19 lockdowns forced people to eat more of their meals at home. Even though restaurants have re-opened, demand for Campbell’s brands remains solid. That should drive its earnings—and stock price—higher. CAMPBELL SOUP CO. $45 is a buy. The company (New York symbol CPB; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 298.1 million; Market cap: $13.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.5; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.campbellsoupcompany.com) sold most of its international and refrigerated-foods businesses in 2018. That let it focus on canned soups, pasta and V8 vegetable juices. Campbell also kept its snack food operations. They were significantly expanded in March 2018 when the company paid $6.1 billion for snack-foods maker Snyder’s-Lance. Snacks now account for half of its total sales. As a result of that acquisition, Campbell’s sales jumped 22.6%, from…