From staff reports
For the first time, Austin-based Hormel Foods Corp. has lowered its earnings outlook.
Hormel said today that the recent Russian ban on poultry imports has resulted in an oversupply of meat and poultry on the market.
Hormel said it expects earnings of 20 cents to 24 cents a share for the quarter ending April 27, down from its previous estimate of 30 cents to 34 cents a share.
The current estimate of brokers surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call was 31 cents per share. Hormel earned 28 cents a share in the second fiscal quarter last year.
ADVERTISEMENT
This morning, the stock was trading 25.95 at a share, down from the 26.97 that it closed at Tuesday.
"This is pretty unusual," Hormel Public Relations Director Julie Craven said this morning. "The ban has backed up chicken in the market. That causes a ripple affect on other products."
