By Connor Hart

Cal-Maine Foods said revenue and profit spiked in its fiscal second quarter as consumer demand for eggs outpaced supply, which has been squeezed by recent bird flu outbreaks.

The egg producer on Tuesday reported a profit of $219.1 million for its quarter ended Nov. 30, compared with $17 million a year earlier.

Earnings came in at $4.47 on a per-share basis, up from 35 cents a share a year earlier and above the $4.05 a share that analysts polled by FactSet forecast.

Revenue jumped to $954.7 million from $523.2 million.

Chief Executive Sherman Miller said the recent quarter's results were boosted by seasonal demand leading up to Thanksgiving, as well as the company's acquisition of ISE America in June. The quarter also benefited from higher prices, which were the result of supply restrictions stemming from recent bird flu outbreaks, he added.

The company sold almost 330 million dozen eggs at an average price of $2.74 a dozen during the recent quarter, compared with about 288 million dozen eggs at an average price of $1.73 a dozen in last year's comparable quarter.

Farm production costs fell 8.5% year-over-year, primarily due to more favorable commodity pricing for key feed ingredients, the company said. Feed costs per dozen eggs were down about 13% from last year.

Looking ahead, Cal-Maine said it will remain committed to its biosecurity programs designed to reduce bird flu outbreaks. It is additionally currently investing about $60 million to expand its egg capacity.

Write to Connor Hart at connor.hart@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 07, 2025 16:28 ET (21:28 GMT)

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