DMP Dominos Pizza Enterprises Limited

TOP STORIES

Red Meat Export Sales Drop -- Market Talk

09:29 ET - Last week was a bad one for U.S. meat merchants. The USDA says exporters sold 11,300 metric tons of beef for 2018 in the week ended May 3, down 30% from a week earlier and 41% from the average of the previous four weeks. Pork sales of 16,500 tons were down slightly from the previous week and 21% lower than the recent average. With large domestic production pressuring livestock prices, traders are looking for healthy exports to keep supplies in check. The start of U.S. grilling season is helping lift demand for beef and certain cuts of pork, which has recently helped meat prices. (benjamin.parkin@wsj.com; @b_parkyn)

IR, Sales-Data Changes Could Help Domino's Enterprises -- Market Talk

0502 GMT - Shares of Domino's Pizza Enterprises have steadily slid from August 2016's record high in Australia, with the franchisee losing nearly half its value. To regain lost ground, longtime bull Morgan Stanley suggests more-precise metrics on same-store-sales growth to account for store splits and even suggests a permanent staff for investor relations; management currently handles that. Despite some profit warnings recently, Morgan Stanley still contends the stock trades at a deep discount to global peers. Shares are up 1.1% today, cutting the year's drop to 8.4%. (mike.cherney@wsj.com; @Mike_Cherney)

STORIES OF INTEREST

Cropland Prices, Incomes Fall in Parts of Midwest -- Market Talk

10:00 ET - Cropland values dropped alongside incomes in parts of the Farm Belt during 1Q, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis. Farm income fell for the 17th consecutive session in the Fed district--which includes parts of states like Illinois, Indiana and Missouri--while prices for "quality" farmland declined 1.4% versus year-ago levels. Prices for ranch and pastureland rose 13%. Farm bankers are growing more optimistic about the agricultural economy as crop prices have risen this year, but a prolonged strain on farm incomes may be driving higher loan demand, the report said. Nearly one-quarter of bankers surveyed said more than half of their farm borrowers would face "severe financial difficulty" without income from off the farm. (jesse.newman@wsj.com; @jessenewman13)

Wm Morrison Posts Strong 1Q in Tough Environment, Says Analyst -- Market Talk

1052 GMT - Wm. Morrison Supermarkets managed a strong first-quarter performance in an increasingly difficult U.K. grocery sector that looks like it could get even tougher if the Asda-Sainsbury merger gets the green light, says Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at markets.com. Morrison reported 1Q like-for-like sales growth--excluding fuel--of 3.6% that Mr. Wilson says included a 1.8% contribution from wholesale, which remains a strong growth area for the grocer. Morrison shares are up 2.4% at 251.20 pence. (maryam.cockar@dowjones.com)

FUTURES MARKETS

Livestock Futures Climb; Meat Supplies, Demand Growing

Cattle futures rose as traders waited for the week's physical trade to develop.

Meatpackers were mostly bidding around $120 per 100 pounds for cattle to slaughter, according to market observers, while feedyards were asking for $127 to $128. Prices last week averaged $125. Even though many expected values to fall this week, some analysts say the futures market will likely have to rise in order to close a historic discount to cash prices.

CASH MARKETS

 
Zumbrota, Minn Hog Steady At $37.00 - May 10 
 
  Barrow and gilt prices at the Zumbrota, Minn., livestock market are 
steady at $37.00 per hundredweight. 
 
  Sow prices are steady. Sows weighing 400-450 pounds are at $33.00-$35.00, 
450-500 pounds are $33.00-$35.00 and those over 500 pounds are $37.00-$39.00. 
 
The day's total run is estimated at 100 head. 
 
Prices are provided by the Central Livestock Association. 
 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - May 10 
 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
                                      * 
May 10       +$16.17             +$ 24.03 
May 9        +$16.23             +$ 23.23 
May 8        +$17.05             +$ 21.99 
 
* 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   93.6 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)     Select   92.3 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports 

Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Thursday rose 11 cents per hundred pounds to $231.07, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices rose 19 cents per hundred pounds to $209.14. The total load count was 111. Wholesale pork prices rose 37 cents to $71.58 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 10, 2018 17:48 ET (21:48 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.