The breakfast and snack food maker Kellogg Co. said Monday its first-quarter earnings rose 17 percent, helped by sales of snacks including cookies and crackers and a tax benefit, and raised its outlook for the full year. Its shares rose 2 percent in premarket trading.
The maker of Rice Krispies cereal, Eggo waffles and Keebler cookies earned $321 million (euro235.29 million), or 80 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31 from $274 million, or 68 cents per share, during the year-ago period. The latest results included a $40 million (euro29.32 million) tax benefit.
Revenue rose 9 percent to $2.96 billion (euro2.17 billion) from $2.73 billion.
Wall Street was looking for a profit of 68 cents per share excluding one-time items on sales of $2.85 billion (euro2.09 billion), according to a Thomson Financial poll.
Sales in North America grew 7 percent, as retail cereal sales rose 4 percent and retail snacks sales grew 11 percent, helped by sales of cookies, crackers and fruit snacks.
Kellogg International sales grew 12 percent, or 5 percent excluding the benefit of a weaker U.S. dollar.
Kellogg's brands also include Pop-Tarts, Cheez-It, Nutri-Grain, Murray, Morningstar Farms, Austin, Famous Amos and Kashi.
