LIVESTOCK HIGHLIGHTS: Top Stories of the Day
25 July 2017 - 07:49AM
Dow Jones News
TOP STORIES
Growth Plans, Franchisees Will Be in Focus When McDonald's
Reports -- Earnings Preview
McDonald's Corp. is scheduled to announce its second-quarter
earnings before the market opens on Tuesday. Here's what you need
to know:
EARNINGS FORECAST: Net income of $1.62 per share is expected,
compared with $1.25 a share a year earlier, according to
FactSet.
SAME-STORE SALES AND REVENUE FORECAST: McDonald's is expected to
post a 3.7% increase in global same-store sales for the quarter,
with a 2.9% increase in the U.S., according to FactSet. The company
is expected to report revenue of $5.96 billion, compared with $6.26
billion a year earlier.
Chicken-Hatching Conundrum Could Help Cal-Maine -- Market
Talk
1012 ET - US egg giant Cal-Maine (CALM) says low egg prices
aren't likely to improve anytime soon, but executives say one
factor could work in its favor: Fewer eggs are successfully
hatching in industrial chicken hatcheries, reducing the number of
chickens raised for meat and to lay eggs. Cal-Maine cites USDA data
showing the percentage of such chicks successfully hatched has
declined for 10 of the last 11 months, "suggesting there may be
moderation in the size of the laying hen flock as we move forward."
Poultry execs attribute the hatching decline to new breeds and
genetic selection, emphasizing productivity. (jacob.bunge@wsj.com;
@jacobbunge)
STORIES OF INTEREST
Virginia Officials Confirm Norovirus in Chipotle -- Market
Talk
15:56 ET - The cause of the illness that sickened Chipotle (CMG)
customers in Sterling, Va., was determined to be norovirus after a
second patron tested positive for it, the Loudoun County Health
Department says. Chipotle and local health officials had been
saying they suspected norovirus, a highly contagious virus that
could have been spread by an employee or a customer. The health
department said the source of the norovirus has not yet been
identified. The latest official illness count now tops 135, the
county said. Health officials said they are not aware of any
customers becoming ill since the Chipotle restaurant reopened last
Wednesday, after having been closed for sanitation.
(julie.jargon@wsj.com)
Egg Glut Spoils Cal-Maine's 2017 -- Market Talk
10:09 ET - Shares of Cal-Maine (CALM), the top US egg supplier,
slump after the Mississippi company reports its first annual loss
in more than a decade, due to what the company calls an egg glut.
Prices for egg giants like CALM soared in 2015 as avian flu
decimated egg-laying chicken flocks in the Upper Midwest, but since
then the company says flocks have been rebuilt with younger,
more-productive hens, boosting egg supplies. Meanwhile, some buyers
moved to egg alternatives in 2015 and haven't come back. CALM
reported a $74.3M loss for fiscal 2017 as its 4Q loss widened from
the year-ago period, sending shares 8% lower in early trading to
$34.08. (jacob.bunge@wsj.com; @jacobbunge)
FUTURES MARKETS
Pork Belly Stocks Flopped in June
Frozen pork-belly stocks in June were the lowest on record, as
sizzling demand for bacon kept reserves tight and prices high.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Monday that stocks of
pork bellies in commercial freezers fell to 22.29 million pounds as
of June 30, down almost 30% from a month earlier and 65% from the
same time last year. That was the lowest for June since the USDA
began keeping records in the 1950s.
CASH MARKETS
Zumbrota, Minn Hog $2.00 Lower At $54.00 - Jul 24
Barrow and gilt prices at the Zumbrota, Minn., livestock market today
are $2.00 lower at $54.00 per hundredweight.
Sow prices are $1.00-$3.00 higher. Sows weighing under 450 pounds are
$60.00-$62.00, 400-450 pounds are at $60.000-$62.00, 450-500 pounds
are $60.00-$62.00 and those over 500 pounds are $64.00-$66.00.
The day's total run is estimated at 100 head.
Prices are provided by the Central Livestock Association.
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Jul 24
All figures are on a per-head basis.
Date Standard Margin Estimated margin
Operating Index at vertically -
integrated operations
*
Jul 24 +$34.16 +$ 87.86
Jul 21 +$35.13 +$ 90.29
Jul 20 +$34.42 +$ 92.34
Jul 19 +$34.42 +$ 93.13
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production.
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of
production of the animals.
Beef-O-Meter
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices.
Beef
For Today Choice 103.4
(Percent of Year-Ago) Select 104.3
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports
Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Monday rose 55 cents per
hundred pounds, to $207.46, according to the USDA. Select-grade
prices rose $3.09 per hundred pounds, to $197.89. The total load
count was 99. Wholesale pork prices fell $1.13, to $101.27 a
hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 24, 2017 17:34 ET (21:34 GMT)
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