Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Key Points

• Flowers Foods shares fell after disappointing results, opening at $5.70 versus the prior close of $6.01. Quarterly EPS of $0.10 missed the $0.15 consensus, while revenue of $1.17 billion was slightly below estimates and down 4.7% year over year.
• The company cut its fiscal 2026 EPS outlook to $0.63–$0.68, below the prior analyst consensus of $0.78; its revenue forecast also came in weaker than expected.
• Flowers Foods paid a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, equivalent to an 8.9% yield at the time cited, but its payout ratio was elevated at 192.31%.

Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE:FLO - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $6.01, but opened at $5.70. Flowers Foods shares last traded at $5.9230, with a volume of 1,999,113 shares.

The company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.18 billion. Flowers Foods had a net margin of 1.06% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The company's revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.630-0.680 EPS.

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were given a dividend of $0.1250 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. Flowers Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 192.31%.

Latest Flowers Foods News

These are some of the FLO news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Cash from operating activities increased 44.1% year over year to $78.3 million, while capital spending declined and cash on hand rose. These improvements offer some support, though they were outweighed by weaker profitability. Quiver Quantitative earnings summary
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS was $0.10, below the $0.15 consensus and down from $0.23 a year earlier. Revenue of $1.17 billion also missed estimates slightly and fell 4.7% year over year; net income dropped about 64%. Zacks earnings report
• Negative Sentiment: Flowers Foods cut its fiscal 2026 EPS outlook to $0.63–$0.68, below the prior analyst consensus of $0.78. Its revenue forecast of $5.0 billion–$5.1 billion also came in below the $5.1 billion consensus midpoint, adding to concerns about its near-term growth and earnings prospects. Flowers Foods guidance update

Analyst Ratings Changes

FLO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Flowers Foods from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of Flowers Foods from $6.00 to $5.50 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Flowers Foods from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Flowers Foods from $6.50 to $5.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Flowers Foods from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Flowers Foods has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $5.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cindy Cox sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.89, for a total transaction of $25,916.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 41,030 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $241,666.70. This represents a 9.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 7.23% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Flowers Foods

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Flowers Foods during the second quarter worth about $273,587,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Flowers Foods by 14.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,545,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,497,000 after purchasing an additional 925,245 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the second quarter valued at approximately $18,168,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Flowers Foods by 8.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,770,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,428,000 after purchasing an additional 138,775 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Flowers Foods during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,830,000. 75.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flowers Foods Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of 21.64 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm's 50 day moving average is $6.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.84.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc. is a U.S. bakery company that produces and markets packaged breads, buns, rolls, snack cakes and other baked goods. Its products are sold under brands including Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Tastykake, Canyon Bakehouse and Mrs. Freshley's. Founded in 1919 in Thomasville, Georgia, the company has grown from a local bakery into a national producer of baked goods. Flowers Foods serves consumers across the United States through grocery stores and other retail channels, using a mix of direct-store delivery and warehouse distribution.

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