First-quarter earnings at Hormel Foods Corp.

Thursday, February 17, 2000

First-quarter earnings at Hormel Foods Corp. increased 13.7 percent over a year ago.

The Austin-based company announced today operating earnings of $43.84 million, or 30 cents per share, for the first quarter ended Jan. 29.

This is an improvement of $5.27 million, or 13.7 percent, over 1999’s first-quarter earnings of $38.57 million, or 36 cents per share.

Total reported earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 1999 of $42.38 million, or 29 cents per share, were slightly higher than announced operating earnings because of a one-time gain of $3.8 million, or 3 cents per share, for the sale of land by Campofrio Alimentacion, S.A., in Madrid, Spain, a leading global foods company in which Hormel Foods has a 21.4 percent ownership interest.

All per-share amounts have been adjusted to reflect the two-for-one spilt of Hormel Foods common stock approved by shareholders Jan. 25.

Dollar sales for the first quarter were $903.91 million, an increase of $104.9 million, or 13.1 percent, from the $799 million reported for the first quarter of fiscal 1999.

This corresponds to a 5.4 percent tonnage increase that followed an 8.7 percent gain in last year’s first quarter and 7.1 percent for the full fiscal 1999 year.

Joel W. Johnson, Hormel chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer, was pleased with the overall performance of the company’s core business groups and the key strategies in place that continue to provide solid top and bottom line growth.

"The volume growth continues at Hormel Foods," Johnson said, "We are pleased to see customers and consumers responding favorably to our many product initiatives.

"Our quarterly earnings gains have been particularly strong in recent years and the just concluded first quarter was no exception.

"Our basic strategies of adding value to fresh pork, growing the ethnic foods business, expanding foods service and core consumer franchises and building upon our already successful Jennie-O Foods and international operations are producing the very positive financial results we have reported."