(Reuters) – Conagra Brands Inc beat quarterly sales estimates on Thursday as higher product prices offset waning demand for its snacks and ready-to-eat meals.
Packaged food makers have been increasing prices for their products over the past year to shield profit margins from spiraling costs of freight, labor and ingredients such as wheat, corn and edible oils due to supply chain constraints.
Shares of Conagra, known for brands such as Birds Eye and Chef Boyardee, rose about 3.1% in premarket trade.
Conagra reported a loss attributable to the company of $77.5 million, or 16 cents per share, in the first quarter, compared with a profit of $235.4 million, or 49 cents per share, a year earlier.
The company’s net sales rose to $2.90 billion from $2.65 billion. Analysts had expected sales of $2.85 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
(Reporting by Granth Vanaik and Mehr Bedi in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
