Sysco Corp.’s (SYY) reported that fiscal first-quarter net earnings for the period ended September 29, 2012 fell by 5.3 percent as higher sales were negatively impacted by higher expenses and increased charges as part of the food services distributor’s business transformation initiatives.
Total sales came-in at $11.09 billion in the first quarter, up from $10.59 billion in the same quarter of 2011. Net earnings for the quarter totaled $286.6 million, or 49 cents per share, as compared to net earnings of $302.7 million, or 51 cents per share in the year prior quarter. Stripping-out expenses related to its multi-year restructuring, earnings rose from 56 cents per share in 2011 to 58 cents per share in the most recent quarter.
Wall Street analysts were expecting sales of $11.1 billion and earnings per share of 50 cents. Analyst
Operating income was $479 million in the first quarter, a decrease of 6 percent, or $16 million, compared to the year earlier period. Cash flow from operations fell to $213 million from $255 million, largely because of increased tax payments.
Case volume for the Houston, Texas-based company’s Broadline and SYGMA operations combined grew 2.9 percent during the quarter, including acquisitions, and 2.6 pecent, excluding acquisitions.
“Solid sales growth and effective overall operating expense management contributed to increased adjusted EPS in our underlying business for the quarter. Volume gains drove our top line growth as food cost inflation moderated from the historically high levels experienced in recent quarters,” said Bill DeLaney, Sysco’s president and chief executive officer.
The company is hosting a conference call this morning at 10 AM ET to discuss the most recent quarter.
Shares closed Friday at $31.34 and have been on a solid climb since hitting 52-week lows of $26.58 in May.
