Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. CALM promoted Michael Ermon as the Vice President of Operations on Dec 23. He will report directly to Sherman Miller, the chief operating officer (COO).
Ermon will be responsible for Cal-Maine’s production and processing facilities located at Farwell and Pittsburg, TX, and Chase, KS. He will also be the company’s representative on the operations committee for the Red River Valley Egg Farm joint venture.
Ermon has been associated with Cal-Maine Foods for over a decade and held several positions. Most recently, he served as the Operations Director for the company’s operations in Farwell and Pittsburg. Previously, he was General Manager for the Farwell and Greensburg, LA operations.
Cal-Maine Foods is primarily engaged in the production, grading, packing and sale of fresh shell eggs. The company believes that Ermon’s familiarity with the operations and customers in Texas, and experience in managing the day-to-day operations will boost growth.
Very recently, the Jackson, MI-based company reported the fiscal second-quarter 2016 results, wherein net sales of $546.0 million, jumped 44.2% last year over year. Earnings of $2.26 per share were also significantly higher than 76 cents reported last year.
This impressive growth came primarily on the back of higher average selling prices and a modest increase in volumes. While egg prices were still much higher than normal at the beginning of the second quarter, they dropped considerably in October before moving back up driven by higher demand during the Thanksgiving week.
However, the industry has been struggling with the significant reduction in the laying hen flock across the country in the past spring due to the Avian Influenza outbreaks in the upper Midwestern U.S. While the supply has improved a little, per the recent reports by the USDA, the figure is still approximately 9% lower than last year. Egg prices have moved lower than expected despite reduced supply, and the company anticipates the volatility to persist for some more time.
The company has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
Some better-ranked food stocks are Omega Protein Corp. OME, Boulder Brands Inc. BDBD and Campbell Soup Company CPB. All the three stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
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