General Mills Boosts Outlook

General Mills Inc. (GIS) boosted its guidance for the fiscal year ending May 2009 thanks to a strong operating performance and a lower fourth-quarter tax rate.

Shares of this Zacks #2 Rank (”Buy”) company have advanced approximately 3.5% today on volume of about 2.5 million, compared to the average daily volume around 3.1 million.

The owner of Cheerios and Haagen-Dazs ice cream now anticipates fiscal 2009 adjusted earnings to eclipse its previous outlook of $3.87 to $3.89 per share. Analysts, on average, are calling for profit of $3.90 per share, which has remained constant over the past 2 months.

General Mills stated that “the significant investments it has been making in product innovation and consumer marketing will help carry momentum into the new fiscal year.”

The company said that it would provide specific financial guidance for fiscal 2010 on Jul 1.

Meanwhile, the consensus estimate for the fiscal year ending May 2010 has climbed a penny to $4.16 per share over the past week, as 2 of 14 covering analysts raised expectations.

Subscribe by RSS Subscribe by Email