TOP STORIES

Sanderson Farms Logs 1Q Profit, Beats Analysts' Expectations

Sanderson Farms Inc. logged a profit for the first fiscal quarter and a 10% bump in its net sales.

The Mississippi-based company reported a $9.5 million profit in the three months ended Jan. 31 compared with a $38.6 million loss a year earlier. The company's profit was 42 cents a share, compared with a loss of $1.76 a share a year ago. Wall Street, according to FactSet, was expecting the company to report a loss.

Dead Chickens, Frozen Oranges Confront Farmers in South After Severe Cold

Severe winter conditions across the U.S. south this month left hundreds of thousands of chickens dead and froze groves of fruit, pushing the episode's estimated cost to farmers and agriculture companies into the hundreds of millions of dollars, industry officials said.

Crop and livestock producers are still tallying the steep cost in animal and plant life after days of snow and record-low temperatures gripped parts of Texas and other southern U.S. states. The resulting draw on power and natural gas supplies forced closures of plants that manufactured animal feed and processed milk, creating a calamity for a major meat- and fruit-producing region.

Beyond Meat To Be McDonald's Preferred Supplier for Plant-Based Burger in 3-Year Deal

A new three-year agreement has been struck between plant-based meat substitutes producer Beyond Meat Inc. and McDonald's Corp. which will include the supply of plant-based burgers.

Beyond Meat said Thursday that under the terms of the strategic agreement, it will be the fast-food chain's preferred supplier for the patty being tested in certain restaurants.

STORIES OF INTEREST

Products, Not Pandemic, to Boost Papa John's -- Market Talk

0931 ET - Papa John's International says its focus on bringing new products to the market is sustaining its sales in 1Q. The company introduced a stuffed crust pizza at the end of last year, which is appealing to heavy pizza consumers, it says in 4Q earnings. CEO Rob Lynch says that new products will sustain the chain's growth, not pandemic-related eating behaviors. Papa John's shares off 8% in early trading on a 4Q earnings miss. (heather.haddon@wsj.com; @heatherhaddon)

U.S. Seafood Suppliers Face Trouble for Lent

Clogged ports and full freezers are snarling the flow of seafood to American dinner plates, boosting costs for fish suppliers and consumers.

A flood of imports, and workforces diminished by Covid-19, have caused backlogs at major U.S. ports, stranding containers of frozen fish on ships and docks in places like California and New Jersey. Freezers in key port cities are also filling up, often leaving seafood with nowhere to go once it is unloaded, and prompting importers to shuttle fish between warehouses or across longer distances to find cold storage.

FUTURES MARKETS

Livestock Futures Mixed on Weak Exports -- Market Talk

1511 ET - Livestock futures closed mixed -- with live cattle futures finishing 0.5% lower at $1.21675 per pound and lean hogs futures up 0.4% to 89.75 cents per pound. For both, particularly cattle, weak export sales reported by the USDA were a source of pressure. Beef sales totaled only 8,500 metric tons for the week ending February 18, with South Korea being the leading buyer at 3,800 tons. That's down 63% from the previous week. Meanwhile, pork exports totaled only 25,600 tons, down 23% from the previous week. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

CASH MARKETS

 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Feb 25 
 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
 
Feb 25       +$ 26.70            +$ 68.08 
 
Feb 24       +$ 23.52            +$ 60.77 
 
Feb 23       +$ 28.17            +$ 62.13 
 
* 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  115.9 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)      Select  114.5 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports

Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Thursday fell 36 cents per hundred pounds, to $240.39, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices fell $1.00 per hundred pounds, to $228.79. The total load count was 92. Wholesale pork prices rose $3.40, to $94.07 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 25, 2021 17:29 ET (22:29 GMT)

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