Tyson Foods posted a loss in its fiscal second quarter, its first quarterly loss since 2009, and cut its sales forecast as its performance was weighed down by hefty charges related to plant closures and restructuring.
Shares slid more than 9% before the market open on Monday.
The Springdale, Arkansas-based company, whose brands include Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm, Ball Park and its namesake, lost $97 million, or 28 cents per share, for the three months ended April 1. A year earlier it earned $829 million, or $2.28 per share.
Taking out plant closure-related charges and restructuring charges, it lost 4 cents per share.
The performance surprised Wall Street, with analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research predicting a profit of 81 cents per share.
Revenue was basically flat at $13.13 billion. That's below Wall Street's estimate of $13.6 billion.
“While the current protein market is challenging, we have a strong growth strategy in place and are bullish on our long-term outlook,” said Donnie King, president and CEO of Tyson Foods, in a statement. “We saw strong performance in our branded foods business and continue to be laser-focused on meeting customer needs and planning the future with them.”
Tyson Foods Inc. now anticipates fiscal 2023 revenue of $53 billion to $54 billion. Its previous forecast was for revenue between $55 billion and $57 billion.
Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect revenue of $55.19 billion.