Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today announced that it will host its second quarter fiscal 2020 earnings conference call at 10:00 a.m. Central time, 11:00 a.m. Eastern time, on Thursday, May 28, 2020. During this call, management will comment on Sanderson Farms’ financial and operating results for the second quarter ended April 30, 2020. Those who wish to participate in the call may do so by dialing 888-204-4368 (Conference Code 7782528).

When just a handful of companies supply most US meat, a single plant problem has an outsized impact.

(Bloomberg) -- Investors are picking a new fight with the world’s biggest meat companies as coronavirus outbreaks sicken thousands of workers.After tackling issues including the use of antibiotics, animal welfare and climate change, investors are turning their attention to plants that have become virus hotspots. Firms that manage $2.3 trillion in assets want meatpackers to adopt recommendations they say will keep workers safe and mitigate reputational and financial risks.The investors are urging the likes of Tyson Foods Inc. and JBS SA to take steps including enforcing social distancing, providing personal protective equipment and opposing any federal or state policies that deny unemployment benefits or stimulus relief to staff that refuse to go back to work due to fear of being infected, according to a statement by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility signed by more than 100 global investors.More than 10,000 American meat workers have been infected with the virus, and at least 30 have died, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union estimates. Plant conditions -- including difficulty maintaining distancing and adhering to heightened cleaning standards -- increased risks for infections, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Major facilities were forced to close, tightening meat supplies and pushing up prices for beef and pork.“The issues raised in this statement are longstanding engagement themes that weren’t created by -- but only exacerbated by -- the Covid-19 crisis,” said Nadira Narine, a senior program director at the ICCR in New York. “Companies are quick to publicly champion essential employees’ health and safety as a top priority, but workers on the frontline in the meat sector report feeling more expendable than essential.”The pandemic has highlighted worker conditions at slaughterhouses, where cold, damp factories and crowded workstations make infectious diseases particularly hard to control. The jobs are also low-paying and provide few benefits, further underscoring how labor inequality is one of the most significant rifts brought to the fore by Covid-19.Three weeks ago, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to keep plants running amid the outbreaks. Since then, more than a dozen facilities have reopened. Union leaders and worker advocates have argued that maintaining production in spite of the outbreaks will lead to more infections.Investors are also asking for increased worker safeguards, requesting companies to provide more protective gear, including “the most effective respirators available.” The money managers are also advocating to ensure testing is available and asking for an end to lobbying aimed at increasing factory-line speeds.“If only these type of measures had been implemented early on, they would have resulted potentially in some lower output numbers for March and April but then you wouldn’t have had the big spikes in Covid-19 incidents,” said Peter van der Werf, senior engagement specialist at Robeco, a Dutch firm with $190 billion under management. Companies would probably also have avoided factory shutdowns, he said.Tyson said in a written response that the health and safety of its team members is its top priority and the reason it has put in place additional safeguards, protocols and guidelines. They include taking temperatures, installing dividers, requiring the use of face coverings and designating monitors to help enforce social distancing.JBS and its Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. chicken unit said they routinely and transparently engage with investors and have implemented similar measures to keep workers safe in the pandemic.Investor pressure on meatpackers isn’t new. Members of the ICCR network have actively engaged with producers for many years and have advocated for less antibiotics use. Some have also addressed animal welfare and water stewardship. More recently, the FAIRR network has been imploring the industry to reduce its carbon footprint.While worker rights have come to the forefront in the pandemic, such issues aren’t new either. The American Baptist Home Mission Society has for two straight years filed shareholder proposals on human rights due diligence with Tyson. The latest one was rejected at the company’s annual meeting in February, shortly after the first coronavirus case was confirmed in the U.S. Tyson’s board advised shareholders to vote against that proposal, arguing the company’s policies and practices adequately address the concerns raised, according to filings.Shareholder activism has been more prevalent in energy and mining than in the food sector, largely because founding families or private owners still control voting rights. That’s the case with the top poultry companies in the U.S.: Tyson and Pilgrim’s Pride.The Tyson family, for instance, owns all Class B shares, which gives it a 10 to 1 voting advantage, meaning not even all the Class A holders would be able to outvote the family.That’s why passing shareholder proposals is almost impossible, said Mary Beth Gallagher, executive director of Investor Advocates for Social Justice, who has been engaging with the company for seven years.Oxfam filed similar proposals that didn’t gather enough support at the annual general meetings of Pilgrim’s Pride and Sanderson Farms Inc. earlier this year. The NGO also sent a letter to poultry companies on April 16 requesting measures including paid sick leave, said Alex Galimberti, senior advocacy and collaborations adviser for U.S. domestic programs at Oxfam.“This sector has a history of not respecting human and worker rights,” Galimberti said. “Its objective has been short-term profit without protecting the long-term sustainability of the sector. Now we see the industry’s fragility.”Sanderson Farms said it hasn’t received investor pressure regarding worker safety during the pandemic. The company has laid out the steps it’s taking in a call with investors and added that it runs the slowest line speeds in the industry.Divestment is still an option, but being an active owner is by far the most effective strategy, said Jeremy Coller, founder of the $20 trillion FAIRR investor network.In a 2019 report, Human Rights Watch described the pressure felt by meat workers, for whom even a bathroom break is sometimes hard to come by. The group also highlighted the increasing risk of accidents as companies continue to lobby for waivers that allow them to run production lines faster.“A worker in the meat and poultry industry lost a body part or was sent to the hospital for in-patient treatment about every other day between 2015 and 2018,” the organization said, citing data from Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA.The report also highlighted poor salaries, adding that wages in the meat and poultry industry fell below that of the national average for manufacturing jobs for the first time in 1983. That gap widened to 24% in 2002 and stands at 44% now.The meat crisis is also opening up space for alternative proteins.Lauren Compere, director of shareholder engagement at Boston Common Asset Management, says her company doesn’t invest in meat stocks due to their environmental, social and corporate governance focus. Still, she is engaging with supermarket chains exposed to the packers and asking them to dedicate more shelf space to plant-based alternatives.“As an asset manager, you have more options available to you, so we intentionally tilted our exposure to the food sector to companies where we feel there’s more of a focus and practice around health and well being,” she said.Many meat companies still aren’t disclosing the number of cases and deaths associated with their employees, and the executive order has allowed them to operate again after closures had eaten in their earnings. The ICCR statement is directed at the whole industry, but focuses on publicly traded companies.“We are concerned for the welfare of all essential workers on the frontline of the COVID-19 crisis in Colorado. In particular, given historic health and safety lapses, we are closely monitoring the meat processing facilities statewide,” said Colorado State Treasurer Dave Young. “It would be a grave error to not use this moment to push for systemic reform.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today announced it has implemented a temporary weekly attendance bonus for the Company’s employees in an amount equivalent to $1.00 an hour for each hour worked. The bonus payment commenced yesterday, Monday, March 30, 2020, and will end Friday, June 26, 2020.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today announced that management will participate in the Goldman Sachs Global Staples Forum to be held Monday, May 18, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this forum will be held in a virtual format only.

Sanderson Farms (SAFM) delivered earnings and revenue surprises of -78.75% and -3.16%, respectively, for the quarter ended April 2020. Do the numbers hold clues to what lies ahead for the stock?

Sanderson Farms (SAFM) doesn't possess the right combination of the two key ingredients for a likely earnings beat in its upcoming report. Get prepared with the key expectations.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today announced that management will participate in the BMO Capital Markets 15th Annual Farm to Market Conference to be held May 13-14, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this conference will be held in a virtual format only.

This week is a shortened trading week with major markets closed Monday in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. Investor focus will remain on the coronavirus and its impact on the U.S. economy as most states across the country continued their phased reopening plans.

U.S. poultry company Sanderson Farms Inc on Thursday said it is reducing chicken production in Georgia, the top U.S. chicken-producing state, after ordering more than 400 slaughterhouse workers who seem healthy to stay home as a precaution against infection by the novel coronavirus. The move could eat into margins at the company and is an early sign of strain in the U.S. food supply chain at a time of surging consumer demand at grocery stores. Sanderson Farms is cutting chicken processing to 1 million birds a week from 1.3 million over the next four weeks in Moultrie, Georgia, after telling 415 workers to stay home with pay, Chief Executive Joe Sanderson said on a conference call.

Which industries might recover more quickly that others? asks Crista Huff, growth and income expert and editor of Cabot Undervalued Stocks Advisor.

Beyond Meat NASDAQ:BYND) is off to a solid start in 2020. BYND stock is up over 30% in 2020. Revenue has grown from $33 million in 2017 to $298 million last year. And gross margins of 34% in the fourth quarter were significantly higher than regular beef sellers.Source: calimedia / Shutterstock.com Beyond Meat continues to pursue partnerships with large restaurant chains, the most recent of which is Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX). And very importantly, the company has a new line of credit in place. This is important because there was some question about whether Beyond Meat would be able to meet the production demand.But that has never been my concern about Beyond Meat. The company is making the right moves. However, the company has never had a moat. And if the recent coronavirus outbreak is reminding us about anything, it's that the audience for its products is finite.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips The Coronavirus and BYND StockIf a manufacturer is facing increased competition for its customers, a logical strategy would be to make efforts to expand its customer base. Beyond Meat is clearly making an effort to expand its customer base. * 9 Healthcare Stocks to Buy Even After the Coronavirus Fades It is seeding its product in familiar locations like McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) and Starbucks. And those partnerships are showing mixed results.In that regard, the coronavirus is creating a lost opportunity because customers are spending more time eating at home. But that also creates an opportunity for Beyond Meat. The Plant-Based Market is RealIn December of last year, the New York Times referenced a Nielsen study about plant-based foods. In the survey, 40% of respondents said they were making an effort to eat more plant-based foods.Now, the marketer in me can quibble with the words "make an effort," but let's take that number at face value. After all, some analysts are forecasting that the market for plant-based food could reach $8.1 billion by 2026.With that kind of forecast, it shouldn't surprise you to know that many of the large meat processors are entering the field. Shortly after Beyond Meat went public, companies such as Tyson Foods (NYSE:TSN), Perdue (NASDAQ:SAFM), and Nestle (OTCMKTS:NSRGY) introduced plant-based meat alternatives.On the one hand, this would bring attention to Beyond Meat products. On the other hand, it remains to be seen if those companies will steal shelf space from Beyond Meat. Consumers Don't Seem to Be Opting for Something NewInvestorPlace contributor Josh Enomoto broke down last year's sales and found that each Beyond Meat customer bought an average of $12.49 of the company's products. With that in mind, I was curious to see if the coronavirus would create an opportunity for Beyond Meat to introduce its products to a wider customer base.I've noticed that depending on when you go to the store, fresh beef may be hard to find. This was a premise for investors driving up BYND stock over 50% in the last month. But as my InvestorPlace colleague Robert Waldo points out, the panic run on the grocery stores has, at least in one case, shown that Beyond Meat may be a luxury that some consumers will decline to purchase. If Not Now, When for BYND Stock?So I'll come back to the question I asked to start the article. If the Covid-19 pandemic is not a catalyst for growing the market for Beyond Meat products, when will there ever be a catalyst?I've written on Beyond Meat quite a bit since its initial public offering (IPO) last year. From the beginning, I've been bearish on BYND stock. And fundamentally I still am.This has nothing to do with the viability of plant-based diets. I know several people who follow a plant-based diet in one form or another. Some do it to assist with an underlying medical condition. Others do it because they believe in the health benefits of a plant-based diet.The problem I've always had with Beyond Meat is they are working with a relatively finite consumer base. And they aren't unique (enough) to prevent competitors from taking away market share.Tim Biggam observed that investors sold BYND stock after each of its last three earnings reports. Given the fact that BYND stock is up nearly 50% in the last month, it is likely that the same dynamics are in place.This isn't a case of a company being mismanaged. It's simply a question of numbers and time. And neither of those work in favor of Beyond Meat as a long-term play.As of this writing, Chris Markoch did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * America's 1 Stock Picker Reveals Next 1,000% Winner * 25 Stocks You Should Sell Immediately * 1 Under-the-Radar 5G Stock to Buy Now * The 1 Stock All Retirees Must Own The post Don't Expect Good Things for BYND Stock as Earnings Approach appeared first on InvestorPlace.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today announced that its Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.32 (thirty-two cents) per share payable May 12, 2020, to stockholders of record on April 28, 2020.

Laurel, Miss.-based Sanderson Farms operates 13 plants throughout Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, North Carolina and Georgia.

Sanderson Farms Inc. reported Thursday a fiscal second-quarter loss that was wider than expected, and sales that surprisingly declined, as the COVID-19 pandemic led to a sharp drop in boneless chicken breast meat. The fresh and frozen chicken company said net income for the quarter to April 30 fell to $6.1 million, or 28 cents a share, from $40.6 million, or $1.83 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding a $37.4 million tax benefit resulting from provisions allowed by the CARES Act, the adjusted loss was $1.43 a share. The FactSet per-share loss consensus was 93 cents. Sales fell to $844.7 million from $845.2 million, while the FactSet consensus was for a rise to $848.1 million. Average sales price per pound of fresh and frozen poultry fell 8.3%, while average feed costs per pound of poultry products processed decreased 1.1%. As an example of market volatility resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said market prices for boneless breast meat had increased to $1.35 a pound during the fourth week of March, then fell to a record low of 74 cents a pound a month later as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with some realized prices hitting 50 cents a pound. As lockdown restrictions started to ease, prices moved to $1.58 a pound by mid-May, before pulling back to current prices of about $1.31 a pound. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trading, has run up 13.5% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.8%.

Pork producer Smithfield sounded alarm bells Sunday, saying the U.S. is “perilously close” to a meat shortage.

Is Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFM) a good dividend stock? How can we tell? Dividend paying companies with growing...

Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) today reported results for its second fiscal quarter and six months ended April 30, 2020.

Favorable demand for poultry products in the retail grocery stores is likely to have reflected in Sanderson Farms' (SAFM) Q2 performance. However, high costs might be a concern.

(Bloomberg) -- Covid-19 is ripping through America’s heartland and causing shutdowns and slowdowns of plants that process much of the nation’s pork and beef. Prices are already surging.Chicken’s a different story. It’s still fairly cheap.While there have been cuts to production at poultry plants, which are mainly located in the southern U.S., and reports of sick workers, the industry hasn’t seen major closures.Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., owned by Brazilian meat giant JBS SA, is the second-biggest chicken producer in the U.S., and it has only cut output by a few percentage points in two of its businesses that target the restaurant industry. Pilgrim’s is also ramping up to meet a surge in online grocery sales -- those saw a six-fold jump in the past four weeks, it said Thursday.Chicken production in the nation is down about 5% from a year ago, Chief Executive Officer Jayson Penn said. That compares to output declines for other proteins of 35%, he said. Red meat is already getting pricey at grocery stores, Penn said, with ground beef and pork chop prices up a fifth or more.“Chicken right now is the value option for many households where the budget is strapped,” Penn said on a call with analysts to discuss financial results. “People are looking right now for healthy foods, and foods that add to their well-being, and chicken right now falls directly into that category.”While cracks have appeared in the nation’s pork and beef supply chain as virus outbreaks idle or reduce output in slaughterhouses across the country, poultry processors haven’t been hit by the same severity.‘Got to Have Meat’That’s partly because the slaughter process for chicken is more automated than it is for pork and beef and few people work in areas of a plant where the birds are killed and de-feathered, said Mike Cockrell, chief financial officer of Sanderson Farms Inc.The Mississippi-based company has only reduced its egg sets for chickens destined for food service, and hasn’t reduced supplies bound for retail. Sanderson ran two of its plants last weekend and is running four this weekend to meet increased grocery demand amid tighter pork and beef supplies.“They’ve got to have meat in the meat case so their orders for chicken have been very heavy,” Cockrell said by telephone, noting his local Kroger was out of beef and only had marinated pork tenderloins available earlier this week. “In the meantime, pork and beef is going to be expensive and chicken is going to look more attractive than normal.”There’s still enough chicken to go around globally, too. Exports to China are also surging, Penn said. He expects shipments to increase 15% this year for the company. A hog-killing virus swept through Asia last year, and destroyed much of the region’s herds, which means they need overseas supplies.“There is intent for China and the U.S. to continue to do business in the poultry sector,” he said. “All indications for me are that China will be there, and I don’t see any reason why that’s going to change.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.