LIVESTOCK HIGHLIGHTS: Top Stories of the Day
February 25 2021 - 5:44PM
Dow Jones News
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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