Topic: Growth Stocks

Wall Street Stock Forecaster Hotline – Friday, September 4, 2015

Article Excerpt

CAMPBELL SOUP CO., $47.94, New York symbol CPB, reported better-than-expected earnings this week, thanks to acquisitions and price increases. In its fiscal 2015 fourth quarter, which ended August 2, 2015, the company’s earnings fell 48.8%, to $0.22 a share from $0.43 a year earlier. Without the cost of a restructuring, including management layoffs and eliminating overlapping functions, Campbell’s earnings per share rose 4.9%, to $0.43 from $0.41. That beat the consensus estimate of $0.42. Sales fell 8.6%, to $1.69 billion from $1.85 billion, but that still matched the consensus forecast. If you adjust for the negative impact of currency rates, acquisitions of new businesses and an extra week in the year-earlier quarter, sales rose 1%. That’s partly because Campbell is giving fewer discounts to retailers. The company will likely earn $2.53 to $2.58 a share in fiscal 2016, and the stock trades at 18.8 times the midpoint of that range. That’s still acceptable in light of Campbell’s falling costs and well-known brands. The…