Shares of Tyson Foods Inc. took a dive Monday after the meats company missed fiscal fourth-quarter sales expectations and provided a downbeat full-year outlook, as overall protein production is projected to decline.
The stock
TSN,
slumped 2.9% in premarket trading, putting it within range of the more-than three-year closing low of $45.17 on Oct. 23. The selloff also means the stock was headed for a fourth straight monthly decline, which would be the longest such streak since the six-month losing streak that ended May 2018.
The company swung to a net loss for the quarter to Sept. 30 of $450 million, or $1.31 a share, from income of $538 million, or $1.50 a share, in the same period a year ago.
Excluding nonrecurring items, such as plant closures and goodwill impairment, adjusted earnings per share of 37 cents beat the FactSet consensus of 29 cents.
Sales fell 2.8% to $13.35 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $13.73 billion, as average prices declined 1.4% and volume was down 0.6%.
“While economic headwinds persist, we are moving in the right direction and managing what we can control,” said Chief Executive Donnie King.
Within Tyson’s meat segments, beef sales rose 3.5% to $5.03 billion, as a 10.2% increase in average prices offset a 6.7% drop in volume. Pork sales dropped 6.9% to $1.49 billion, as prices fell 6.7% and volume slipped 0.2%. In chicken, sales sank 10% as volume increased 1.7% but prices were down 9.2%.
For fiscal 2024, the company expects sales to be “relatively flat” with 2023, while the FactSet consensus of $54.37 billion implies 2.8% growth from the $52.88 billion in 2023 sales.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicated fiscal 2024 protein production will “decrease slightly” from 2023 levels, with beef production down 5% while production of pork increases 2% and of chicken increases “slightly.”
Tyson’s stock has dropped 15% over the past three months through Friday, while the S&P 500 index
SPX
has slipped 1.1%.
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