Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported C$0.32 EPS for the quarter, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of C$991.24 million for the quarter. Maple Leaf Foods had a net margin of 4.22% and a return on equity of 12.88%.

Here are the key takeaways from Maple Leaf Foods’ conference call:

• Transformation complete: Management says the heavy investment phase is behind them and Maple Leaf is now in a “delivery and return” phase with operational momentum and a sharper protein?focused CPG strategy.
• Strong results — Q4 sales of CAD 991 million (+8.1%) and full?year sales of CAD 3.9 billion (+7.7%), with Adjusted EBITDA up to CAD 476 million (+21%) and margins expanding 140 bps to 12.2%.
• Balance sheet and shareholder returns improved: net debt fell ~CAD 521 million to CAD 995 million (2.1x leverage), management raised and paid a special dividend (~CAD 75M), increased the regular dividend and plans an active NCIB.
• Input cost inflation (especially in prepared foods) remains elevated; company implemented pass?through price increases in mid?February to help recover inflation but says it is too early to judge the consumer volume response.
• Plant protein headwinds: the company recorded a non?cash impairment on plant protein intangible assets and acknowledged near?term uncertainty in profitability, though it still describes the segment as a longer?term upside opportunity (<5% of revenue today).

Maple Leaf Foods Trading Up 5.6%

Shares of MFI opened at C$28.31 on Friday. Maple Leaf Foods has a 12-month low of C$22.57 and a 12-month high of C$36.35. The firm has a market capitalization of C$3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.48, a P/E/G ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 100.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of C$26.29 and a 200 day moving average price of C$28.39.

Maple Leaf Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Maple Leaf Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Maple Leaf Foods’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MFI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$33.00 price target on Maple Leaf Foods and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 27th. TD Securities cut their price target on Maple Leaf Foods from C$43.00 to C$42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reduced their price objective on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$36.00 to C$35.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Maple Leaf Foods from C$35.00 to C$33.00 in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$35.93.

About Maple Leaf Foods

Maple Leaf Foods Inc is a consumer-packaged meats company. It produces prepared meats and meals, fresh pork, and poultry and turkey products. The company also has agribusiness operations. These operations supply livestock to the meat products business operations. Its main markets are Canada, the United States, Japan, and China. The key brands are Maple Leaf and Schneiders, Maple Leaf Prime Naturally, Shopsy, Mitchell’s Gourmet Food, Larse, Parm, and Hygrade.