J&J Snack Foods (JJSF) Beats On Earnings & Revenues In Q4

J&J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF) reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2017 earnings of $1.29 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.25 by 3.2%. The reported figure also climbed 17.3% year over year.

Net sales of this leading snack food provider came in at $316.7 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $289.4 million by 9.4%. Sales also improved 21% year over year on strong sales of soft pretzels, churros, handhelds and certain bakery products.

The company’s total operating expenses increased 23.7% year over year to $60.7 million owing to higher marketing, distribution and administrative expenses.

Operating income was $36.9 million, showing an increase of 20% from $30.7 million a year ago.

J & J Snack Foods Corp. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Fiscal 2017 Highlights

J&J Snack’s earnings of $4.21 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.17 by about 1% in fiscal 2017. The figure also improved 4% year over year. Net sales came in at $1.08 billion, up 9% year over year

The company has three reportable segments — Food Service, Retail Supermarkets and Frozen Beverages.

Total Food Service reported sales of $701.8 million, were up 13% year over year. Retail Supermarket segment reported net sales of $119.2 million, up 1% from a year ago. The company’s Total Frozen Beverages division recorded $268.1 million in net sales, up 4% year over year.

Financials

J&J Snack Foods’ cash and cash equivalents were $90.9 million as of Sep 30, 2017, down from $140.7 million as on Sep 24, 2016.

Long-term obligations under capital leases were $904 million at the end of the year, down from $1.235 million as of Sep 24, 2016.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $125.3 million in the fiscal versus $121.2 million a year ago.

Zacks Rank & Peer Releases

J&J Snack Foods currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

B&G Foods’ (NYSE:BGS) adjusted earnings per share of 55 cents beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 48 cents by 14.6%. Earnings however declined 1.8% from the year-ago quarter. Revenues increased 20.3% year over year driven by the spices & seasonings business and Victoria Fine Foods business.

The Hershey Company’s (NYSE:HSY) earnings and revenues beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in third-quarter 2017. Growth in its core brands, successful innovation and progress in multi-year productivity and cost-saving initiatives helped the company come up with better numbers.

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) reported third-quarter 2017 results, with earnings and revenues surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Adjusted earnings of 57 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 54 cents by 5.6%. Adjusted earnings grew 12%, primarily driven by operating gains.

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