DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Sara Lee Corp. (SLE) swung to a fiscal-second-quarter loss amid
restructuring charges, a write-down of its North American
food-service beverage business and commodity-hedging losses.
The consumer packaged-goods firm and maker of the namesake
cheesecake, Jimmy Dean sausages and Hillshire Farm's meats also
lowered its outlook again for the year amid projected sales
weakness.
Sara Lee also cut its fiscal-year earnings outlook by 4 cents to
73 cents to 80 cents a share and lowered its revenue guidance to a
range of $12.8 billion to $13 billion from a range of $13 billion
to $13.3 billion.
For the period ended Dec. 27, Sara Lee reported a net loss of
$17 million, or 2 cents a share, compared with year-earlier net
income of $182 million, or 25 cents. Excluding the write-down and
other items, earnings fell to 21 cents from 22 cents.
Net sales fell 2% to $3.34 billion because of the stronger
dollar.
Analysts' mean estimates put earnings at 21 cents a share on
revenue of $3.4 billion, according to a poll by Thomson
Reuters.
Gross margin fell to 34.8% from 37.9%
The company, which has been in restructuring mode since 2005,
has sold or spun off many of its slower-growth businesses and has
battled fluctuating commodity prices and shrinking consumer
budgets. Sara Lee announced plans to outsource additional
back-office operations in December, an effort to save up to $250
million a year as some consumers turn to no-name brands.
The company in recent years has spun off various operations,
including Hanes Apparel, and spent heavily in marketing and product
development.
Sara Lee shares, which have lost one-third of their value the
past six months, closed Tuesday at $10.43 and there was no
premarket trading.
-By Veronica Dagher and Tess Stynes, Dow Jones Newswires;
201-938-5400; veronica.dagher@dowjones.com
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