Conagra, a high‑yield defensive staple offers a low P/E and a very high yield. The firm features a relatively stable mix of everyday food brands that tend to hold up across economic cycles, suggesting the dividend can be sustained. For value‑minded investors, the stock trades at 7.6 times its forecast 2026 earnings per share.
That’s a discounted multiple for a branded food company, and if management merely delivers on its guidance and keeps the dividend intact, there’s room for both yield and multiple‑re‑rating upside. Meanwhile, revenues are well‑diversified: it gets about 91% of revenue from the U.S., with strong positions in frozen meals, vegetables, snacks, and baking, and exposure to multiple consumption occasions and channels. Ongoing innovation and brand renovation (new frozen lines, better‑for‑you offerings, and snacking formats) help defend shelf space and pricing, while low beta and the defensive consumer‑staples category can provide portfolio ballast in volatile markets.
CONAGRA BRANDS INC. (New York symbol CAG; www.conagrabrands.com) remains a buy for long-term gains and income.
The company makes a variety of popular foods, including Hunt’s tomato sauce, Orville Redenbacher popcorn and Reddi-wip whipped cream.
The company is now adjusting its portfolio to focus on more profitable products. For example, it recently launched a new line of frozen meals and desserts in partnership with country music star Dolly Parton.
Conagra is also selling some of its slower-growing businesses. Those include its Chef Boyardee brand of ready-to-eat pasta meals for $607.0 million. It also sold its frozen fish business, which includes the Van De Kamp’s and Mrs. Paul’s brands, for $41.9 million.
Conagra reported better-than-expected sales for its latest quarter thanks to stronger demand for its frozen meals and snack products. However, a weaker-than-expected earnings forecast caused the stock to fall 2%.
The company’s sales for the fiscal 2026 third quarter, ended February 22, 2026, fell 1.9%, to $2.79 billion from $2.84 billion a year earlier. That beat the $2.76 billion consensus forecast.
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If you exclude businesses it bought and sold, as well as movements in currency exchange rates, organic sales improved 2.4%. That’s due to higher volumes (up 0.5%) and selling prices (up 1.9%).
The company is also paying higher costs for beef and other ingredients, as well as new U.S. tariffs on packaging materials made of steel and aluminum. As a result, earnings before unusual items dropped 23.5% in the quarter, to $0.39 a share (or a total of $188.2 million) from $0.51 a share (or $242.1 million) a year earlier. That missed the consensus estimate of $0.40 a share.
Conagra’s stock has a low P/E and a high yield
To offset its higher costs, Conagra is modernizing its facilities and streamlining its supply chains.
The company now expects it will earn $1.70 a share for all of fiscal 2026, which is at the low end of its previous target range of $1.70 to $1.85 a share. The stock trades at just 7.6 times that new forecast. The $1.40 dividend still looks secure and yields a very high 10.7%.
Recommendation in Wall Street Stock Forecaster: Conagra Brands Inc. is a buy.
