DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Reducing pesticides in food: Major food manufacturers earn an F grade
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

“Pesticide exposure during pregnancy may lead to an increased risk of birth defects, low birth weight, and fetal death,” the American Academy of Pediatrics stated. “Exposure in childhood has been linked to attention and learning problems, as well as cancer.”Yet pesticide exposure is widespread, even for chemicals that were banned years ago by federal agencies. In the 2023 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce — a list of nonorganic produce with the most pesticides — researchers found 210 different pesticides on the 12 foods. In addition, consumers can ask food companies to “release the actual test results of pesticide concentrations in their products,” said EWG’s Temkin. “Food companies have not been publishing such data, instead relying on generalities,” she said via email.

Persons: ”, Cailin Dendas, “, disheartening, Jane Houlihan, Houlihan, Kale, collard, ” Alexis Temkin, toxicologist, ” Dendas, Jim Watson, Dendas, Sow, General Mills, Archer Daniels, Lamb, Nestlé, Dane Lisser, Shelby Stoolman, EWG’s, Temkin, ” Temkin, “ Steer Organizations: CNN, “ Pesticides, Healthy, “, ”, American Academy of Pediatrics, Environmental, US Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, US Centers for Disease Control, Getty, Archer Daniels Midland Co, PepsiCo Inc, Conagra Brands Inc, Campbell Soup Company, Lamb Weston Holdings Inc, G Foods Inc, Cargill, Danone S.A, Del Monte Pacific Ltd, General, Inc, Kraft Heinz Company, Mars Incorporated, Mondelēz, Post Holdings Inc, ADM, US Food and Drug Administration Locations: United States, AFP

In recent weeks, U.S. consumers have seen high-profile food recalls for an unappetizing reason: They're contaminated with foreign objects that have no place on a dinner plate. “Extraneous materials” triggered nine recalls in 2022 of more than 477,000 pounds of food regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service — triple the number of recalls tied to food contaminated with toxic E. coli bacteria. Trader Joe’s wouldn’t elaborate on how material got into the foods that led to its recent recalls. In recent years, firms have become increasingly cautious and are recalling products more frequently than before, said Nathan Mirdamadi, a consultant with Commercial Food Sanitation, which advises the industry about food safety. Consumers who find foreign materials in food should notify manufacturers, experts said, but also realize that recalls are likely to stick around.

Persons: Tyson, Keith Belk, “ they’re, ” Belk, Nathan Mirdamadi, “ It’s, Mirdamadi, there’s, Dee, Ann Durbin Organizations: U.S . Food, U.S . Department of Agriculture’s, USDA, FDA, Regulators, ConAgra Brands Inc, Center for Meat Safety, Colorado State University ., Centers for Disease Control, Food Sanitation, Consumers, AP, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group Locations: U.S

☆ Kellogg raises annual profit outlook on higher prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Kellogg's cold cereal products are pictured in a market in New York, U.S., June 21, 2022. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File PhotoAug 3 (Reuters) - Kellogg Co (K.N) on Thursday forecast a smaller drop in annual profit than it had previously expected, as multiple price hikes for its breakfast snacks and cereals helped strengthen its margins. The Corn Flakes maker said it expected 2023 adjusted profit per share to decline between 1% and 2%, compared with the prior forecast for a decline of 1% to 3%. However, the company posted a 4.6% rise in net sales to $4.04 billion in the second quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $4.07 billion, according to Refinitiv data. Reporting by Mehr Bedi and Aatrayee Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Milla NissiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mike Segar, Mehr Bedi, Aatrayee Chatterjee, Milla Nissi Organizations: REUTERS, Kellogg, PepsiCo, Conagra Brands Inc, Hershey, Thomson Locations: New York, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Conagra Brands forecasts dour sales as higher prices hit demand
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 13 (Reuters) - Conagra Brands Inc (CAG.N) on Thursday forecast annual sales and profit below Wall Street estimates, in a sign that higher prices were starting to eat into demand for the Slim Jim beef jerky maker's frozen foods and other packaged meals. The company, like other global packaged food makers, has been steadily raising product prices over the past few years to counter spiraling costs, and had faced little resistance from consumers until recently. Persistent inflation has eroded budgets at many American households, forcing consumers to trade down from branded packaged food products to cheaper private-label alternatives, which has impacted sales at Conagra. The company expects 2024 organic net sales growth to be 1% higher than 2023, while analysts on average were expecting an increase of 2.77%, according to Refinitiv estimates. Full-year adjusted EPS is expected between $2.70 and $2.75, compared with analysts' average estimate of $2.85 per share.

Persons: Slim, Mehr Bedi, Aatrayee Chatterjee, Shinjini Organizations: Conagra Brands Inc, Wall, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

[1/3] Packaged food for sale is seen on shelves at a Dollar Tree in Islandia, New York, U.S., May 12, 2023. Razor manufacturer Edgewell Personal Care Co (EPC.N) and Kraft Heinz Co (KHC.O) have overhauled or built new teams dedicated to working with the biggest U.S. dollar stores like Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR.O) and Dollar General Corp (DG.N) in the last year. Makers of food and household staples are pushing deeper into dollar stores because the low-cost retailers are opening thousands of locations each year. Griffin added that dollar stores are also introducing more "premium" private label brands, like Dollar General's Nature's Menu for pets. Kraft-Heinz also created a new team of five people late last year to identify and develop products for dollar stores, a spokesman said.

☆ CFOs Focus on Building Resilient Supply Chains, Even as Pandemic Disruptions Fade
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Jennifer Williams-Alvarez | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

An uncertain economic environment means third parties in Conagra’s supply chain sometimes require extra assistance. Photo: Justen Williams for The Wall Street JournalAs if finance chiefs didn’t have enough on their plates before the pandemic, surging shipping costs, freight logjams and factory disruptions in China over the past few years have laid bare their need to adapt and step up their involvement in boosting supply-chain resilience. “Supply chain is obviously always an important part for us,” said Conagra Brands Inc. Chief Financial Officer Dave Marberger . At roughly $9 billion, it is the single biggest line item when looking at the cost of goods sold for the Chicago-based food manufacturer, which makes Hunt’s ketchup, Healthy Choice frozen meals and Slim Jim meat sticks. “But obviously with Covid and the significant impact it’s had on supply chain, it’s been even more of a priority for me.”

☆ Conagra Earnings, Sales Climb as Food Prices Rise
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Dia Gill | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Conagra , which makes Hunt’s tomato products, attributed its most recent quarterly results to inflation-driven price increases. Conagra Brands Inc. raised its guidance for the second consecutive quarter as the food manufacturer posted a nearly 60% profit increase. For the quarter ended Feb. 26, the Chicago-based maker of Slim Jim meat sticks, Reddi-wip and Marie Callender frozen meals reported a net income of $341.7 million, up from $218.4 million in the same quarter a year prior. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected net income of $303 million.

☆ Conagra lifts profit forecast as price hikes offset demand pressures
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

These price increases have boosted profits at Conagra, which is now also benefiting from easing inflation in commodity prices including those of meat and other proteins. However, higher grocery and food prices have forced some consumers to trade down from branded packaged food products to cheaper, private-label alternatives, denting sales volumes at Conagra. That prompted the company to trim the top end of its annual organic net sales forecast to a 7% to 7.5% rise, compared with a 7% to 8% growth estimated earlier. Credit Suisse analysts have also warned that Conagra sales could decelerate faster compared to its peers in full-year 2024, owing to the company's exposure to price-sensitive, lower-income consumers. Conagra said it expected fiscal 2023 adjusted per-share profit between $2.70 and $2.75, compared with its prior forecast of $2.60 to $2.70.

[1/3] Ben & Jerry's, a brand of Unilever, is seen on display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., March 24, 2022. Nestle said cutting products saved 1 billion Swiss francs last year ($1.06 billion), while Unilever said the practice saved $2 billion. Food makers tend to cull products without much fanfare. At the consumer products conference they highlighted new offerings, many of them increasingly popular handheld foods that people can eat while scrolling on phones. "You'd be shocked by the loyalty and personal connections people have to food products," he said.

[1/3] Ben & Jerry's, a brand of Unilever, is seen on display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., March 24, 2022. Eliminating less popular products is part of a "decomplexity program" underway at Kraft Heinz, its executives said at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York Conference this week. Nestle said cutting products saved 1 billion Swiss francs last year ($1.06 billion), while Unilever said the practice saved $2 billion. At the consumer products conference they highlighted new offerings, many of them increasingly popular handheld foods that people can eat while scrolling on phones. "You'd be shocked by the loyalty and personal connections people have to food products," he said.

After pushing prices to new heights last year, some companies are starting to pull back. It could be another sign that inflation is starting to turn a corner. Conagra Brands Inc., which makes Hunt’s ketchup and Slim Jim meat sticks, raised prices 17% in its latest quarter, on top of two previous quarters, when it increased prices more than 10%.

☆ Companies’ Capital Spending Forecast to Slow in 2023 Amid Recession Fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +8 min

Companies are expected to tap the brakes on capital investments this year as they assess the risk of a downturn and contend with higher financing costs. Capital spending in 2021 rose by 9% compared with 2020, the first year of the pandemic, EY said. After two years of spending heavily, some companies want to take a pause to digest the investments they’ve made, advisers said. FedEx Corp. last month lowered its capital spending forecast for the current fiscal year by $400 million, to $5.9 billion. The remainder said they don’t finance their capital spending plans through borrowing, or their borrowing isn’t sensitive to changes in interest rates.

☆ Conagra CFO Doesn’t See Need for Big Price Increases in Near Term
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Jennifer Williams-Alvarez | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Photo: Conagra Brands“We won’t have any more significant price increases unless our cost, our inflation estimate, starts to go back up,” Mr. Marberger said. The reading comes amid moderating price increases after a peak of 9.1% in June. I never, ever remember that kind of a price increase,” Mr. Marberger said. “They are now turning the corner and from here are going to need less rapid price increases, unless some other price shocks occur.”Conagra’s sales volumes fell 8.4% for the quarter ended Nov. 27 as customers responded to the price increases, the company said. “And that plays well for us.”Overall, Conagra’s customers—which include retailers Walmart Inc. and Kroger Co. —have accepted the price increases, Mr. Marberger said.

Known for its Birds Eye, Chef Boyardee and Slim Jim brands, Conagra is increasing some of its prices in its current fiscal 2023 third quarter. "We don't currently have any plans to take additional pricing beyond that," Connolly said, noting the plans could change if inflation persists. The price of groceries eaten at home rose an estimated 11%-12% in 2022, versus a 7%-8% increase in restaurant menu prices, according to estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "If you're going to spend your day at home instead of in the office, odds are the breakfast and the lunch that you're going to have is going to be a product like a Healthy Choice Power Bowl," Connolly said. "We've now moved it to just about everything we sell in our frozen meals business," he said.

NEW YORK, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Conagra Brands Inc (CAG.N) Chief Executive Officer Sean Connolly said in a Reuters Newsmaker interview on Tuesday that he sees double-digit inflation in fiscal 2023, although protein costs are moderating. The company, known for its brands Birds Eye and Chef Boyardee, raised its full-year forecasts last week, after beating quarterly results, helped mainly by higher prices for its snacks and ready-to-eat meals. Its share price rose 12% in 2022 and shot up further after the improved forecasts. Packaged food makers have undergone several rounds of price increases in the past year to shield their profit margins from higher costs, which people have accepted as they find eating out far more expensive than cooking at home. Reporting by Jessica DiNapoli and Hilary Russ in New York Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Conagra Raises Outlook as Higher Prices Continue to Lift Sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Dean Seal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Conagra, which makes Slim Jim meat snacks, said Thursday it was still working against inflated input costs. Conagra Brands Inc. expects higher sales and earnings for fiscal 2023 after the food company continued to raise prices to stave off inflation and supply-chain pressures. The Chicago-based maker of Healthy Choice frozen meals and Slim Jim meat sticks said revenue rose 8.3% to $3.31 billion in the quarter ended Nov. 27 thanks to price increases and a shift in the mix of products it sold.

☆ Conagra Brands raises 2023 forecast on price increases
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of the company, known for its brands Birds Eye and Chef Boyardee, rose about 4% in premarket trading. But people have accepted the higher prices with little push back, as they find eating out far more expensive than cooking at home. On Thursday, Conagra forecast a 7% and 8% rise in full-year 2023 organic sales, which excludes impact from foreign exchange, divested businesses and acquisitions, compared with the previous expectation of 4% to 5% growth. Conagra said its higher average selling prices boosted organic sales by 17%, offseting an 8.4% decline in sales volumes in the second quarter. Net sales rose to $3.31 billion, while analysts had expected $3.28 billion in sales.

☆ With Debt Coming Due, Investment-Grade Companies Are Paying Up, Too
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Nina Trentmann | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

What’s more, volatile markets have resulted in fewer opportunities for companies to sell their debt. Investment-grade U.S. companies have between $550 billion and $750 billion coming due per year from 2023 through 2027, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., with about $59 billion left to pay off or refinance in 2022. Of the $615.54 billion, $504.31 billion were new issuances, compared to $111.23 billion in refinancings, Dealogic said. But investor demand for bonds has been stronger in recent days, leading Amazon.com Inc. and others with near-term debt coming due to the market. Among the businesses that recently took out bond debt at a higher cost is retail giant Walmart Inc.

☆ Coupa Software Weighs Right Time to Refinance Low-Rate Debt Amid High Rates
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Mark Maurer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Coupa Software Inc. is searching for the right time to refinance over $2 billion in convertible debt that it holds at nearly evanescent rates—despite rising financing costs and the fact that its maturities are more than two years away. Tony Tiscornia, chief financial officer at Coupa Software. “For a young software company, we would really like to see a lot of the focus on just growth at this time, over profitability,” she said, speaking generally. The company will likely refinance with convertible debt because the interest rate tends to be lower than that of straight debt, he said, adding that more equity would dilute shareholdings. Conagra said it had $8.98 billion in net debt as of Aug. 28, down from $9.19 billion a year earlier.

☆ Rising Rates Boost Companies’ Focus on Working Capital Management
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Nina Trentmann | Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Higher interest rates are putting more pressure on companies to free up cash from their operations, a cheaper option than relying on credit. PREVIEWRising financing costs are one of several factors pushing companies to improve how they manage working capital, alongside high inventory levels and persistent inflation. “The only difference now is that with your cost of capital being higher, sometimes the economics change, but we’re always looking at working capital,” he said. “Working capital management comes more in focus,” Mr. Fracassa said, as it costs more for companies to draw on their revolving lines of credit with today’s higher rates. “It was kind of the unique rebuild period for working capital,” Mr. Wells said.

☆ Rising Rates Boosts Companies’ Focus on Working Capital Management
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Nina Trentmann | Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

☆ Loans Are Cheaper Than Bonds for Some Highly Rated Companies
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Nina Trentmann | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Some highly rated companies are turning to term loans instead of bonds for their financing needs, taking advantage of cheaper pricing as banks have been slower to adjust to rising interest rates than the credit markets. Highly rated companies raised $998.8 billion in bonds in the U.S. this year through Monday, compared with $177.9 billion in term loans, according to Refinitiv, a data provider. For all of last year, fundraising through bonds amounted to $1.46 trillion versus $236.7 billion for term loans for investment-grade-rated companies. Term loans often have a shorter duration than bonds, with many of them ranging from three to five years. Term loans tend to be secured,” Mr. Holtz said, pointing to the mixture of bonds and term loans that make up the company’s capital structure.

Search resuls for: "Conagra Brands Inc"

22 mentions found