2023-04-06 08:42:53 ET
Lamb Weston ( NYSE: LW ) shares were lifted by an earnings beat and raised guidance for the full year.
The Idaho-based consumer staples company notched an 127% increase in non-GAAP EPS to $1.43 as net sales increased 31% to $1.25B for its fiscal third quarter. Analysts had anticipated $0.99 in earnings per share on $1.16B in revenue. Overall volume was flat as solid growth in shipments to large chain restaurant and retail channel customers was offset in part by softer traffic at casual dining and full-service restaurants across the North American market.
“Our performance was broad-based, with strong sales and earnings growth across each of our core business segments that were in line with or exceeded our projections for the quarter,” CEO Tom Werner commented. “We expect this momentum will continue through this fiscal year and provide a solid foundation for fiscal 2024. However, we continue to believe that the near-term macroenvironment in North America and Europe will remain volatile as we face higher costs for raw potatoes and other key inputs, and as consumer demand and restaurant traffic continue to be affected by inflationary pressures.”
Management now expects net sales of between $5.25B and $5.35B and adjusted diluted EPS of between $4.35 and $4.50 while the former was hiked from a prior outlook of $4.8B to $4.9B . The latter figure was raised from a prior expectation of $3.75 to $4. Consensus expectations for each metric stood at $3.94 and $5.15B.
Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings ( LW ) rose 4.3% in premarket trading on Thursday.
Read more on why the Seeking Alpha Quant team remains wary of the company’s valuation .
For further details see:
Lamb Weston stock pushes higher on earnings beat, elevated forecast