Shares of General Mills Inc.
GIS,
sank 4.7% in premarket trading Wednesday, after the consumer-foods company reported fiscal second-quarter profit that beat expectations, while revenue missed and the full-year outlook as consumers continue “stronger-than-expected value-seeking behaviors.” The company, which brands include Cheerios, Häagen-Dazs and Betty Crocker, said net income for the quarter to Nov. 26 was $595.5 million, or $1.02 a share, compared with $605.9 million, or $1.01 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of $1.25 beat the FactSet consensus of $1.16. Sales declined 1.6% to $5.14 billion, to miss the FactSet consensus of $5.35 billion, as volume fell four percentage points to offset a three percentage point increase in prices. For fiscal 2024, the company said it now expects organic sales to be down 1% to flat from a year ago, compared with previous guidance of growth of 3% to 4%, “reflecting a slower volume recovery in fiscal 2024.” The stock has slumped 20.4% year to date through Tuesday, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF
XLP,
has slipped 4% and the S&P 500
SPX,
has climbed 24.2%.
