Valued at a market cap of $36.8 billion, Sysco Corporation (SYY) engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the food service or food-away-from-home industry. The Houston, Texas-based company is expected to announce its fiscal Q2 earnings results before the market opens on Tuesday, Jan. 28.
Ahead of this event, analysts expect the food products distributor to report a profit of $0.93 per share, up 4.5% from $0.89 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has surpassed Wall Street's earnings estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing on another occasion. In Q1, SYY’s adjusted EPS of $1.09 missed the forecasted figure by 3.5%.
For fiscal 2025, analysts expect Sysco to report an EPS of $4.57, up 6% from $4.31 in fiscal 2024.
Shares of SYY have declined 1.9% over the past 52 weeks, massively lagging behind both the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 21.8% rise and the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund’s (XLP) 5.2% return over the same time frame.
On Oct. 29, shares of SYY plunged 1.2% following its mixed Q1 earnings release. Due to robust growth in its International business segment, the company’s top-line grew 4.4% from the year-ago quarter to $20.5 billion and marginally surpassed the Wall Street estimates. However, its adjusted earnings of $1.09 per share increased 1.9% from the year-ago quarter but missed the forecasted figure by 3.5%. A 27-bps year-over-year drop in gross profit margin primarily due to customer mix and strategic sourcing timing coupled with lower foot traffic to restaurants mainly led to its bottom-line miss and downward price movement.
Wall Street analysts are moderately optimistic about Sysco’s stock, with a "Moderate Buy" rating overall. Among 17 analysts covering the stock, 11 recommend "Strong Buy," and six suggest “Hold.”
The mean price target for SYY is $86.08, which indicates a 17% potential upside from the current levels.
