Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.01 EPS

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. Conagra Brands had a positive return on equity of 10.44% and a negative net margin of 16.99%.The business had revenue of $2.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.56 earnings per share. Conagra Brands’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Conagra Brands updated its FY 2027 guidance to 1.400-1.500 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Conagra Brands’ conference call:

• Management said the dividend cut is intended to help Conagra move toward its 3.0x leverage target while preserving room to invest in the business and maintain investment-grade credit quality.
• The company plans a meaningful increase in fiscal 2027 investment, including about $40 million more in brand building and $125 million of incremental CapEx to improve supply chain resilience and lower costs through insourcing.
• Management expects pricing actions in Frozen to help offset persistent inflation, while still targeting productivity above 4%; however, this balance is likely to keep volume under pressure, with organic sales expected to decline mid-single digits.
• John Brase reiterated that Conagra will continue to back its core growth areas, especially Frozen and permissible snacking, and said the company believes it has a strong innovation pipeline and attractive long-term category positioning.
• Management acknowledged the business has become too large and too complex, and said portfolio simplification and SKU rationalization will be a mid- to long-term effort, with more detail expected at Investor Day in early 2027.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of CAG opened at $14.48 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $13.60 and its 200 day moving average is $15.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $6.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.62 and a beta of -0.02. Conagra Brands has a 12-month low of $12.53 and a 12-month high of $20.32.

Conagra Brands Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be issued a $0.175 dividend. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 30th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -35.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CAG. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Monday, April 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Conagra Brands from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $14.00.

Trending Headlines about Conagra Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Conagra Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Conagra beat quarterly EPS estimates and posted 3.6% year-over-year revenue growth, which helped offset some of the weaker parts of the report. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts lifted price targets after the update, including JPMorgan to $15 and UBS to $14, suggesting the new outlook may be more realistic even if growth is modest. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are viewing the dividend cut as a way to free up roughly $335 million annually for debt reduction and reinvestment, which could support a turnaround under new management. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management is pursuing a “strategic reset,” including higher reinvestment, a margin reset, supply-chain improvements, and portfolio simplification, which could help long term but will take time to show results. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies kept a Hold rating and raised its target to $14, reflecting a cautious stance after revenue and operating profit came in below expectations. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Conagra’s fiscal 2027 EPS guidance of $1.40 to $1.50 came in below Wall Street expectations, signaling ongoing profit pressure. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The company also reported a quarterly loss and announced a 50% dividend reduction, underscoring the strain from higher costs and weaker margins. Article Title

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 14,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 2,826 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Conagra Brands by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,667,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $305,829,000 after purchasing an additional 2,079,903 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 240,129 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,157,000 after purchasing an additional 18,061 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,343,000. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $289,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra’s product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender’s and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt’s sauces, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.