US poultry food group Tyson Foods swung to a first-quarter profit today (5 February), boosted by sales in the firm’s beef, pork and prepared foods divisions.
Net income amounted to US$160m in the three months to 2 January, compared to a loss of $102m in the prior year.
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Tyson also swung to an operating income to $314m after reporting an operating loss of $198m last year.
All operating segments, Tyson said, were profitable, with three above their “normalised” ranges.
Operating income in Tyson’s chicken division amounted to $78m, up 3.2%. Beef increased 4.4% to reach $119m, while pork operating income amounted to $62, a 7.6% increase.
“With more than half a billion dollars in operating cash flow, we generated a record first quarter EPS of $0.42 and drove down net debt by $400m,” added Donnie Smith, Tyson’s president and CEO.
Smith added that its expects seasonal demand for chicken to improve further into fiscal 2010, and that it expects the pricing environment to improve.
