Flowers Foods increases net income on lower sales in first quarter

Thomasville, GA-based Flowers Foods Inc. (NYSE: FLO), producer of Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Tastykake and other bakery foods, reported financial results for the company's 16-week first quarter ,ended April 24, 2021.

KEY POINTS

• Sales decreased 3.5% to $1.302 billion, compared with record results in the prior year period, driven by the pandemic.
• Net income increased $77.4 million to $71.7 million due primarily to a $116.2 million charge in the prior year period related to the termination of one of our pension plans. Adjusted net income increased 1.3% to $87.6 million.
• Adjusted EBITDA decreased 1% to $161.6 million. Adjusted EBITDA represented 12.4% of sales, a 30-basis point increase.
• Diluted EPS increased $0.37 to $0.34. Adjusted diluted EPS was consistent with the prior year period at $0.41.

"As the economy reopened in most of the country, our branded retail mix moderated somewhat toward the end of the quarter and foodservice began to recover," said Flowers Foods president and chief executive Ryals McMullian. 

"However, it is important to note that branded retail demand remains elevated over pre-pandemic levels," he continued. "To maintain our momentum and sustain the growth of our brands, we are continuing to invest in innovation and marketing. We believe those investments benefited our results in the first quarter, and we expect them, together with our portfolio strategy, digital initiative, and efficiency programs, to drive our future performance."

See Flowers Foods Inc.'s full news release at PR Newswire.