WhiteWave Foods Co., the dairy producer known for brands such as Land O’Lakes butter and Silk milk alternatives, rose to the highest ever after raising its earnings forecast for the year despite the dollar’s strength.
Shares of the Denver, Colorado-based company advanced 5.6 per cent to $46.17 at 1:01 p.m. in New York on Friday, after jumping as much as 8.8 per cent to the most on record. Before Friday, the shares had fallen 6.2 per cent from an all-time high on April 16.
Adjusted earnings per share in 2015 will be between $1.10 and $1.14, compared with an earlier estimated range of two cents lower, WhiteWave said.
“Our strong first quarter performance, along with enduring consumer tailwinds driving continued growth in our categories, are enabling us to increase our outlook for the year,” Gregg Engles, chairman and chief executive officer, said in a press release.
Earnings in the first quarter were 24 cents a share, beating the 22 cent average estimate of 20 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Currency headwinds took a one-cent toll on earnings at the company, which claims about 15 per cent of its revenue from outside North America.
WhiteWave’s revenue climbed 10 per cent to $911 million, above estimates. The company has beat forecasts for revenue for seven straight quarters, and surpassed earnings expectations in eight of the past 10 results.
News by Bloomberg, edited by ESM
