Peanut Butter Prices Skyrocketing

Tallahassee, FL 11/1/11 (StreetBeat) --Trick-or-treaters might want to hold on to those Reese's Cups this Halloween as sharp increases in peanut butter prices have begun going into effect following one of the worst peanut harvests in decades.

Kraft (NYSE: KFT) will raise prices for its Planters brand peanut butter by 40% starting Monday, while ConAgra (NYSE: CAG) has instituted increases of more than 20% for its Peter Pan brand that went into effect this month. J.M. Smucker (NYSE: SJM), which makes Jif, will introduce price hikes of around 30% starting Tuesday.

Consumers, meanwhile, are already seeing these increases reflected at grocery stores. Maria Brous, a spokeswoman for the Publix chain, said the store had already made slight increases in retail prices and expects them to go higher "as the cost of goods continue[s] to rise". Dick Roberts, a spokesman for Giant Eagle grocery stores, said that "like all retailers," the store is "being affected by industry factors on peanut butter pricing". Chris Brand, a spokesman for Giant food stores, said the "outlook does not look good until next year's crop is harvested and produced". Peanuts usually get harvested in the fall, around September and October.

While spokespeople for several grocery chains declined to provide specific pricing figures, the peanut industry is clearly under pressure this year after one of the worst harvests in recent memory. Prices for a ton of runner peanuts, commonly used to make peanut butter, hit nearly $1,200 this month, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That's up from just $450 per ton a year ago. Overall, the USDA projects that American peanut production will hit 3.6 billion pounds this year, down 13% from last year.

Analysts attribute this drop to the intense heat and drought that hit the southern U.S. this year, as well as to high prices for other crops that led farmers to focus their efforts elsewhere.

Americans spend almost $800 million on peanut butter and consume an average of more than six pounds of peanut products each year, according to The National Peanut Board, a farmer-funded research group.

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Tomahawk, WI 8/18/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Retailer Sears (SHLD) reported a second-quarter loss of $146 million, or $1.37 a share, wider than a year earlier, as domestic comparable-store sales declined. Shares were down 3.7% at $57.91.

A year earlier, Sears lost $39 million, or 35 cents a share.

On an adjusted basis, Sears posted a loss of $1.13 a share. Analysts were forecasting the retailer to lose 64 cents a share in the second quarter.

NetApp (NTAP) shares were dropping 14% after the company said its fiscal first-quarter earnings fell. The computer networking company also issued a weak second-quarter outlook.

Shares of JDS Uniphase (JDSU) were falling 2.7% after the company said it expects its fiscal first-quarter revenue to fall short of analysts' estimates.

The maker of communications equipment maker posted increases in fourth-quarter earnings and sales. But JDS Uniphase said first-quarter net revenue would come in at about $400 million to $425 million; analysts were expecting $471 million.

Consol Energy (CNX) agreed to sell a 50% stake of its Marcellus Shale acreage in Pennsylvania and West Virginia to Noble Energy for $3.4 billion. The companies said the joint development plan calls for the rig count to increase from four to 16 by 2015. Consol shares were up 11% to $47.

Dollar Tree (DLTR) shares were losing 4% to $63.80 after the discount retailer reported weaker-than-expected sales for the second quarter. The company's sales rose 12% to $1.54 billion, but fell short of estimates for $1.55 billion.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) is expected to post adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.09 a share after the markets close Thursday on revenue of $31.2 billion. The PC and printer maker earned $1.08 a share a year earlier on revenue of $30.7 billion.

Shares were down 1.2% to $31.02 in premarket trading Thursday.

J.M. Smucker (SJM) booked weaker-than-expected sales of $1.19 billion for the quarter ended July 31, though the figure was 13% higher than a year earlier. Analysts had expected Smucker to book quarterly revenue of $1.25 billion. The company also lowered its 2012 revenue outlook, citing weakening demand and recent price cuts. Adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.12 a share beat expectations by 3 cents.

Coca-Cola (KO) plans to invest $4 billion in China over the next three years as the company tries to improve global growth. China accounts for 7% of Coca-Cola's global sales by volume. The stock was down by 1.4% to $68.32.

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J.M. Smucker said fiscal third-quarter profit fell 3% to $132 million, or $1.11 a share, from $135.5 million, or $1.14 a share, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring and merger and integration costs, non-GAAP income per share was $1.27. Net sales rose 9% to $1.31 billion from $1.21 billion. The Wall Street consensus was calling for earnings of $1.26 a share on revenue of $1.25 billion. There were no premarket quotes for J.M. Smucker, the branded food products company. Shares settled at $63.95, up 1.7% on Wednesday.

Duke Energy reported that fourth-quarter income grew 23% to $427 million, or 32 cents a share, from $346 million, or 26 cents a share, a year earlier. On an adjusted basis, Duke, a power company, reported earnings of 21 cents a share. Operating revenue increased about 11% to $3.45 billion from $3.11 billion. Analysts, on average, expected earnings of 23 cents a share on revenue of $3.16 billion. There were no pemarket quotes for Duke. The stock fell 1.1% to $17.70 at the market close Wednesday.

Gold producer Barrick Gold said fourth-quarter adjusted net income rose 57% to $947 million, or 95 cents a share, from $604 million, or 61 cents a share, last year. Sales increased about 25% to $2.95 billion from $2.36 billion. Analysts, on average, had been targeting earnings of 84 cents a share on revenue of $2.74 billion. Shares of the company rose 1.6% to $50.50 during premarket trading Thursday.

Graphics chip maker Nvidia reported a strong quarterly profit performance and outlook, but the shares were dipping into the red. The stock fell 3.6% to $22.55 during premarket trading Thursday.

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