LIVESTOCK HIGHLIGHTS: Top Stories of the Day
March 20 2019 - 5:51PM
Dow Jones News
TOP STORIES
General Mills Leans On Price Increases to Boost Results--3rd
Update
General Mills Inc. boosted profit with higher prices, but sales
slipped in the latest quarter for the maker of Cheerios cereal and
Yoplait yogurt.
That reflects the challenge big food makers face as they raise
prices on products that in many cases have fallen out of favor with
consumers who prefer fresh food.
General Mills reported sales of $4.19 billion, up 8% compared
with the year-earlier quarter and in line with analyst expectations
for the period.
General Mills reported a profit of $446.8 million, or 74 cents a
share, in the quarter, compared with $941.4 million, or $1.62 a
share, a year prior, when a nonrecurring income-tax benefit
increased earnings.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand Launches U.S. Branding Campaign
Beef + Lamb New Zealand, an industry group representing the
nation's beef and sheep farmers, announced a multi-million-dollar
branding campaign aimed at U.S. consumers.
The group said it would, in partnership with several retail
brands, launch the marketing campaign to educate consumers about
meats from New Zealand. Markets in Los Angeles and San Francisco
would be the first markets targeted by the program, which will
include online and video ads, a social media component and a
bespoke website.
STORIES OF INTEREST
Roundup Ruling Wilts Agriculture Stocks -- Market Talk
10:52 ET - The second U.S. jury decision in eight months ruling
that glyphosate, the world's most widely used weedkiller, caused a
defendant's cancer sent shares of Roundup maker Bayer plunging, and
also weighed on rival pesticide manufacturers. DowDuPont, which is
preparing to spin out its seed and pesticide unit Corteva this
year, declines 0.4%, while chemical company FMC falls 0.8% and
fertilizer and farm supplier Nutrien falls 1.1%, versus a 0.3%
decline in the S&P 500. DowDuPont makes glyphosate-resistant
seeds, FMC sells herbicides designed to pair with glyphosate and
Nutrien sells it through its retail locations.
(jacob.bunge@wsj.com; @jacobbunge)
Starbucks Backs Venture Fund Focused on Food, Retail -- Market
Talk
09:22 ET - Starbucks is teeing up a $100M for a fund managed by
Valor Equity Partners that will invest in companies developing new
technologies and products related to food or retail. CEO Kevin
Johnson says Starbucks made the investment because the company may
want to partner with the startups in the future. Valor hopes to
raise another $300M for the fund, named Valor Siren Ventures I L.P.
The fund may invest in products, technologies and related
solutions. (micah.maidenberg@wsj.com; @MicahMaidenberg)
FUTURES MARKETS
Hog Futures Lead Livestock Higher -- Market Talk
15:40 ET - CME hog futures rally, gaining 3.4% while cattle
futures rise 0.5%. Traders are largely optimistic after China's
recent pork purchase, and are watching for sustained demand in this
week's export sales data as African swine fever continues to spread
throughout the country. "We'll see if that was a one-time hit or a
new buying program put into place," Don Roose of U.S. Commodities
says. (francesca.fontana@wsj.com; @francescamarief)
CASH MARKETS
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Mar 20
All figures are on a per-head basis.
Date Standard Margin Estimated margin
Operating Index at vertically -
integrated operations
Mar 20 +$ 18.43 +$ 23.18
Mar 19 +$ 25.11 +$ 23.72
Mar 18 +$ 24.49 +$ 19.34
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production.
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of production of the animals.
Beef-O-Meter
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices.
Beef
For Today Choice 102.4
(Percent of Year-Ago) Select 100.9
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports
Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Wednesday fell 66 cents per
hundred pounds, to $228.67, according to the USDA. Select-grade
prices fell 83 cents per hundred pounds to $218.63. The total load
count was 100. Wholesale pork prices fell 25 cents to $72.52 a
hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 20, 2019 17:36 ET (21:36 GMT)
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