By Connor Hart

Hormel Foods logged higher sales in its fiscal fourth quarter, but the company swung to a loss as profitability remains under pressure due in part to ongoing cost inflation.

Interim Chief Executive Jeff Ettinger on Thursday said the food company behind brands including Planters, Skippy and Spam has taken steps that aim to improve profitability, such as targeted price increases, reductions in administrative expenses and continued modernization investments.

"These efforts are laying a solid foundation for improved earnings performance in fiscal 2026," he said.

Looking ahead, Hormel guided for adjusted earnings of $1.43 to $1.51 a share on sales of $12.2 billion to $12.5 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were looking for adjusted earnings of $1.45 a share on sales of $12.43 billion.

The Austin, Minn., company noted its outlook assumes net sales growth across each of its business units, despite a continually pressured consumer environment. Hormel also expects a modest improvement in most commodity markets during the second half of next year, as well as increased brand investments and advertising.

Shares rose 3.9%, to $24.17, in premarket trading.

For its quarter ended Oct. 26, Hormel posted a loss of $56.1 million, or 10 cents a share, compared with a profit of $220.2 million, or 40 cents a share, a year earlier. The recent quarter included a roughly $234 million noncash impairment charge, which the company said was primarily related to a minority investment in its international unit and certain intangible assets in its retail segment.

Stripping out one-time items, Hormel notched earnings of 32 cents a share. Analysts had forecast adjusted earnings of 30 cents a share.

Sales edged 1.5% higher to $3.19 billion, slightly below the $3.22 billion that Wall Street modeled.

Write to Connor Hart at connor.hart@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 04, 2025 06:45 ET (11:45 GMT)

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