Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Key Points

• Flowers Foods issued FY 2026 guidance of $0.75–$0.85 in EPS and approximately $5.1 billion in revenue, below analyst expectations of $0.83 EPS and $5.2 billion in revenue.
• The company’s shares fell 4.4% to $7.13 following the update. Flowers Foods had also missed its latest quarterly estimates, reporting $0.21 EPS and $1.19 billion in revenue.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $8.00; the CFO nevertheless bought 5,000 shares, while institutional investors own 75.45% of the stock.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 0.750-0.850 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.830. The company issued revenue guidance of $5.1 billion-$5.1 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $5.2 billion.

Flowers Foods Stock Down 4.4%

Shares of FLO stock traded down $0.33 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $7.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,770,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,197,164. Flowers Foods has a 52-week low of $6.80 and a 52-week high of $15.98. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $7.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.47. The stock has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 15.98%. Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.750-0.850 EPS. Research analysts predict that Flowers Foods will post 0.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on FLO shares. Stephens dropped their target price on shares of Flowers Foods from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $7.00 target price on shares of Flowers Foods in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded Flowers Foods from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Weiss Ratings lowered Flowers Foods from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Flowers Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $8.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Diego Anthony Scaglione acquired 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $7.51 per share, for a total transaction of $37,550.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 194,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,458,291.80. The trade was a 2.64% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 7.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Flowers Foods

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Flowers Foods during the fourth quarter worth approximately $399,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,333,854 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,032,000 after buying an additional 1,732,003 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Flowers Foods by 1,905.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 297,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,233,000 after buying an additional 282,309 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Flowers Foods by 76.8% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 102,316 shares of the company's stock worth $1,113,000 after buying an additional 44,447 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC grew its stake in Flowers Foods by 73.7% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 24,310 shares of the company's stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 10,313 shares during the period. 75.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc is one of the largest producers of packaged bakery foods in the United States, offering a variety of fresh bread, buns, rolls, snack cakes and tortillas. Headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, the company operates an extensive network of bakeries and distribution centers that serve retail grocery chains, convenience stores, mass merchandisers and foodservice customers nationwide. Flowers Foods markets its products under well-known brands such as Nature's Own, Wonder, Dave's Killer Bread, Mrs.

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