Image source: Silk.
What: Shares of WhiteWave Foods (WWAV) moved up 11% last month, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, as the health-foods stock jumped following a strong earnings report. As you can see from the chart below, most of the gains came after its May 10 report.
So what: The parent of brands like Silk soy milk and Horizon organic dairy beat the experts' view by $0.02 in its first-quarter report, posting an adjusted per-share profit of $0.28, up from $0.24 a year ago. WhiteWave also beat on the top line as revenue increased 14% to $1.04 billion against expectations of $1.02 billion.
CEO Gregg Engles was impressed with the start to the year, noting that the recent acquisitions of Vega and Wallaby have "continued their robust growth trends." Its premium dairy and plant-based foods and beverages divisions performed well in the quarter, while sales at its fresh foods division, made up of the Earthbound Farm brand, were flat, which management said was due to business disruptions in the fourth quarter.
Now what: Adding to the company's confidence was management's decision to bump up its full-year guidance. WhiteWave now sees EPS of $1.38-$1.41 for the full year. With a reasonable P/E ratio, a stable of solid organic brands, and a history of making smart acquisitions, I'd expect WhiteWave shares to continue moving higher.
