Bob Evans Farms Inc (NASDAQ:BOBE) came dangerously close to wiping egg off of its face after missing on the top line during the first-quarter. Luckily, the company famous for its breakfast foods beat on the bottom line and upped its full-year forecast.
Bob Evans’ revenue came in at $306.32 million, down from $321.71 million in the prior year and well below the consensus for $310.92 million. Sales were hurt by a 4.3% decline in same-store sales.
Where the market expected earnings of 44 cents, however, BOBE delivered an adjusted 48 cents per share on net income of $9.6 million. It’s below the per-share profit of 51 cents in the year-ago quarter, but it was enough to best the estimate.
From president and CEO Saed Mohseni:
“We believe our efforts to enhance the guest experience through improved hospitality and food quality are gaining the attention of guests and improving our sales trend. Positive guest comments increased 24 percent during the first quarter, while negative comments declined substantially; a trend we believe will contribute to future sales improvements.”
For the entire year, Bob Evans expects adjusted per-share earnings of $2.05 to $2.20, the mid-point of which bests even the high estimate for $2.09. That guidance is up from the previous range of $2 to $2.15. As for comp sales, BOBE wasn’t quite as optimistic:
“At Bob Evans Restaurants, we continue to expect full-year negative low-single digit to flat same-store sales and a neutral to slightly positive commodity cost environment. Additionally, we will continue to invest in improving the guest experience to drive sales. As for BEF Foods, we have lowered our sow cost forecast to reflect current expectations for the remainder of the fiscal year. At the corporate level, we have lowered our interest expense guidance to reflect a lower than anticipated interest rate environment this year and we will maintain our focus on lowering corporate and other costs required to support our businesses.”
BOBE stock is now up 4.5%.
As of this writing, John Kilhefner did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
