Cal-Maine Foods Q1 Profit Falls 35% on Higher Feed Costs (CALM)

Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: CALM), a producer and marketer of shell eggs in the U.S., today announced its first-quarter fiscal 2012 financial results. The company reported a 35% decline in first-quarter fiscal 2012 profit due to higher feed costs.

Cal-Maine, which owns the Eggland’s Best and Farmhouse egg brands, has been suffering due to rising feed costs since late last year. The company expects feed costs to remain high and volatile for the rest of the year.

For the first quarter ended August 27, 2011, the company reported net sales of $243.8 million, compared with net sales of $190.4 million reported for the same period in the previous year. The company’s net income for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 was $3.1 million, or $0.13 per share, compared with net income of $4.8 million, or $0.20 per share reported for the same period in the previous year.

Dolph Baker, President and CEO of the Jackson, Mississippi-based company, said that the company is pleased with its overall performance for the first quarter of fiscal 2012. Baker further said that on a seasonal basis, the first quarter is historically the slowest period in the company’s fiscal year.

Baker said that the company managed to turn in a profit for the first quarter despite substantially higher feed costs. During the first quarter, the company’s feed costs rose $0.15 per dozen over the same period in the previous year. Baker said that even as the market conditions remain challenging, the company looks forward to the opportunities for growth in fiscal 2012.

Ca-Maine also announced today that it will pay a cash dividend of $0.044 per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2012.

Following the release of first-quarter financial results, Cal-Maine shares have opened lower in trading today. The stock was down 1.91% to $29.85, at last check. So far this year, Cal-Maine shares have fallen 6.45%.

Post Written By: Ed Liston Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.