As the Q3 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the shelf-stable food industry, including The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ: MZTI) and its peers.

As America industrialized and moved away from an agricultural economy, people faced more demands on their time. Packaged foods emerged as a solution offering convenience to the evolving American family, whether it be canned goods or snacks. Today, Americans seek brands that are high in quality, reliable, and reasonably priced. Furthermore, there's a growing emphasis on health-conscious and sustainable food options. Packaged food stocks are considered resilient investments. People always need to eat, so these companies can enjoy consistent demand as long as they stay on top of changing consumer preferences. The industry spans from multinational corporations to smaller specialized firms and is subject to food safety and labeling regulations.

The 20 shelf-stable food stocks we track reported a mixed Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 0.9%.

While some shelf-stable food stocks have fared somewhat better than others, they have collectively declined. On average, share prices are down 3.4% since the latest earnings results.

The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ: MZTI)

Known for its frozen garlic bread and Parkerhouse rolls, The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ: MZTI) sells bread, dressing, and dips to the retail and food service channels.

The Marzetti Company reported revenues of $482.8 million, up 3.5% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.8%. Overall, it was a satisfactory quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ gross margin estimates.

CEO David A. Ciesinski commented, “We were pleased to report record sales, gross profit and operating income for our fiscal first quarter. In the Retail segment, sales growth of 3.5% was led by our category-leading New York Bakery™ frozen garlic bread products, including notable contributions from the delicious gluten-free Texas Toast that we launched last fall. Volume gains for our successful licensing program also added to the increase in Retail segment sales driven by Chick-fil-A® sauces, Olive Garden® dressings, and Buffalo Wild Wings® sauces. In the Foodservice segment, reported net sales increased 8.2% with Adjusted Foodservice Net Sales growth of 3.5% led by higher demand from several of our core national chain restaurant accounts in addition to inflationary pricing.”

Interestingly, the stock is up 4.1% since reporting and currently trades at $164.69.

Is now the time to buy The Marzetti Company? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: J&J Snack Foods (NASDAQ: JJSF)

Best known for its SuperPretzel soft pretzels and ICEE frozen drinks, J&J Snack Foods (NASDAQ: JJSF) produces a range of snacks and beverages and distributes them primarily to supermarket and food service customers.

J&J Snack Foods reported revenues of $410.2 million, down 3.9% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. The business had a very strong quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 9% since reporting. It currently trades at $90.53.

Is now the time to buy J&J Snack Foods? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Slowest Q3: TreeHouse Foods (NYSE: THS)

Whether it be packaged crackers, broths, or beverages, Treehouse Foods (NYSE: THS) produces a wide range of private-label foods for grocery and food service customers.

TreeHouse Foods reported revenues of $841.9 million, down 1.5% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 1%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA and gross margin estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 23.3% since the results and currently trades at $23.50.

Read our full analysis of TreeHouse Foods’s results here.

Mondelez (NASDAQ: MDLZ)

Founded as Nabisco in 1903, Mondelez (NASDAQ: MDLZ) is a packaged snacks powerhouse best known for its Oreo, Cadbury, Toblerone, Ritz, and Trident brands.

Mondelez reported revenues of $9.74 billion, up 5.9% year on year. This number was in line with analysts’ expectations. More broadly, it was a slower quarter as it recorded a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA gross margin estimates.

The stock is down 10.8% since reporting and currently trades at $53.80.

Read our full, actionable report on Mondelez here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Hershey (NYSE: HSY)

Best known for its milk chocolate bar and Hershey's Kisses, Hershey (NYSE: HSY) is an iconic company known for its chocolate products.

Hershey reported revenues of $3.18 billion, up 6.5% year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2.2%. It was a very strong quarter as it also produced an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates.

The stock is up 4.1% since reporting and currently trades at $182.50.

Read our full, actionable report on Hershey here, it’s free for active Edge members.

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