Whole Foods Market Reports In-Line Earnings, Major Board/CFO Shake-Up
Written by StockNews.com
Whole Foods Market, Inc. (Nasdaq: WFM) late Wednesday posted in-line earnings and provided a solid outlook, also announced a major shake-up to its board of directors, as well as a new CFO.
The Austin, TX-based natural foods supermarket operator reported Q2:
- earnings per share (EPS) of $0.37, which was in-line with the Wall Street consensus estimate of $0.37 [while]
- revenues edged slightly higher from last year to $3.74 million, also in-line with analysts’ view for $3.73 billion.
Looking ahead, WFM:
- forecast full-year 2017 EPS of greater than $1.30, which would likely match Wall Street’s consensus outlook of $1.33...[and]
- sees 2017 revenues rise 1% or more, which implies sales around $15.97 billion, also in-line with analysts’ view for $15.93 billion.
To accelerate its returns to shareholders, Whole Foods increased its dividend payout by 29%, to $0.18 per share, and authorized a new $1.25 billion share buyback program to replace its existing program.
Perhaps the biggest news coming out of WFM’s report were several new additions to its board of directors, as well as its new CFO. Gabrielle Sulzberger will take over as the Chair of the Board, Mary Ellen Coe is the new Chair of the Nominating & Governance Committee, and Keith Manbeck was named as the new Chief Financial Officer.
...[John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market] commented via press release:
“We are accelerating our path to enhanced value creation to deliver better returns for our shareholders.
Today’s announcement is a powerful combination of accelerated initiatives and new cost savings with clear timelines to deliver. We are on a path to return to positive comparable store sales and earnings growth next year.
Our increased dividend and new share repurchase authorization demonstrate our Board’s confidence in our long-term growth strategy and continued ability to generate strong cash flow. The Board will continue its comprehensive review of all opportunities to create value.
We look forward to continuing our dialogue with shareholders and providing future updates on our progress.”
Whole Foods Market, Inc. shares rose $0.64 (+1.77%) in after-hours trading Wednesday. Year-to-date, WFM has gained 18.94%, versus a 7.78% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.
WFM currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of A (Strong Buy), and is ranked #3 of 21 stocks in the Grocery/Big Box Retailers category.
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