Campbell Soup cuts quarterly dividend by more than one-third on weak sales forecasts

Campbell Soup Company announced a substantial reduction in its quarterly dividend, cutting it by more than one-third on Thursday. The company forecast that both annual profits and net sales would fall below analyst estimates, driven by pressured spending from consumers. CEO Mick Beekhuizen stated that results remained unacceptable and the firm must address reality head-on. To support margins, Campbell's closed some manufacturing plants and completed workforce reductions as part of a program aiming to save approximately $500 million by fiscal 2030. CFO Todd Cunfer noted an average price increase of 4% to 5% across roughly 60% of the portfolio, though sales are expected to be impacted. Analysts estimate net sales could fall between 2% and 4% in fiscal 2027, significantly worse than the projected 0.8% decline. Shares of the Goldfish cracker brand dropped about 7% in early trading. Separately, Tyson Foods cut its annual profit forecast for a second time within a month. The company lowered its expectation of adjusted operating income to $1.85 billion to $2.05 billion for fiscal 2026 from $2.1 billion to $2.3 billion last month. Revenue growth targets were similarly revised down to 1.5% to 2.0%. Tyson blamed increased pressure in its beef segment due to weak cattle prices, a trend that prompted earlier plans to close or sell three beef operation sites.