LIVESTOCK HIGHLIGHTS: Top Stories of the Day
14 May 2021 - 10:54PM
Dow Jones News
TOP STORIES
General Mills to Buy Tyson Foods' Pet-Treats Business for $1.2 Billion
General Mills Inc. has agreed to buy Tyson Foods Inc.'s
pet-treats business for $1.2 billion in cash, the companies said, a
deal that would complement General Mills' pet-food unit. The deal
would provide an estimated tax benefit of $225 million, equating to
an effective purchase price of $975 million, General Mills said
Friday. The Tyson unit includes the Nudges, Top Chews and True
Chews brands.
Billion-Dollar Pet Treat Deal Gives Tyson Spending Options -- Market Talk
0814 ET - Tyson Foods' $1.2B sale of its pet treats business to
General Mills is a rare major divestiture for the Arkansas meat
giant, but how will Tyson spend the dough? Costs are rising for the
biggest US meat producer, with hundreds of millions in expenses in
the last year related to Covid-19 safety gear and related bonus pay
for workers. This year Tyson and other meatpackers have been hiking
pay to recruit and retain employees, while cost grain and hog costs
have surged in recent months. A Tyson spokesman says funds from the
deal, targeted to close this year, will add to Tyson's capacity to
build its finances, invest in its business and return cash to
shareholders. (jacob.bunge@wsj.com; @jacobbunge)
STORIES OF INTEREST
Simply Good Foods to Restate Several Periods of Financial Statements After SEC SPAC Guidance
Simply Good Foods Co. said it will restart financial statements
for fiscal years 2018 to 2020 and the first two quarters of fiscal
2021 after the Securities and Exchange Commission issued guidance
for entities related to special-purpose acquisition companies.
Simply Good Foods went public through a combination with Conyers
Park Acquisition Corp. in 2017. The company on Friday said the
restatement is related to the accounting treatment for public
warrants and private placement warrants that were outstanding at
the time of its combination with the SPAC.
U.S. Businesses Are Playing Catch-Up as the Economy Surges
A revival in the U.S. economy is driving up demand for
everything from plane tickets to dinner reservations. Many
companies that stand to benefit can't keep up. Diners are streaming
into restaurants but owners can't find enough people to cook or
serve their food. People are shopping for cars in record numbers
but dealers can't fill their lots. Americans are getting back on
planes but the future of the more lucrative business of ferrying
international and business travelers remains in doubt.
FUTURES MARKETS
Hog Futures Lead Push Lower as Soybeans Turn Higher -- Market Talk
1507 ET - Lean hog futures trading on the CME closed down
leading the livestock complex lower -- with the most-active
contract ending down 1.3% to $1.0975 per pound, while live cattle
futures closed down 0.4% to $1.16575 per pound. For hogs, the
downtrend seen in the contract comes as soybean futures trading on
the CBOT managed to turn higher, even as corn -- another common
feed ingredient -- posted another 4.5% dip in trading today. For
soybeans, indications of continued tight supplies kept them higher
today, says Arlan Suderman of StoneX. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com;
@kirkmaltais)
CASH MARKETS
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - May 14
Source: USDA, based on Wall Street Journal calculations.
All figures are on a per-head basis.
Date Standard Margin Estimated margin
Operating Index at vertically -
integrated operations
May 14 -$ 14.00 +$ 97.00
May 13 -$ 11.31 +$ 98.68
May 12 -$ 21.67 +$ 99.92
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production.
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of
production of the animals.
Beef-O-Meter
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices.
Beef
For Today Choice 68.0
(Percent of Year-Ago) Select 67.1
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports
Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Friday rose 16 cents per
hundred pounds, to $316.94, according to the USDA. Select-grade
prices fell $2.72 per hundred pounds, to $293.19. The total load
count was 107. Wholesale pork prices fell 78 cents, to $113.52 a
hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 14, 2021 17:39 ET (21:39 GMT)
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