Kellogg shares rise after earnings beat

Kellogg Co. shares are up 1% in Thursday premarket trading after the food company reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat estimates. Kellogg had a net loss of $53 million, or a loss of 15 cents per share, compared with a loss of $41 million, or 12 cents per share, for the same period last year. Adjusted EPS was 92 cents per share, beating the 85-cent FactSet consensus. The EPS decline was driven mainly by a charge for deconsolidating its Venezuela subsidiary, the company said. Sales for the quarter were $3.10 billion, down from $3.14 billion, but ahead of the $3.07 billion FactSet estimate. Kellogg also announced that it will eliminate its Kellogg direct store delivery selling and distribution system, which will affect about 60% of the U.S. Snacks segment. That portion of the snacks business will move to the retailer warehouse distribution system, which is used for the rest of the U.S. snacks business and all other North America businesses. The transition will be primarily executed in the second and third quarters. Kellogg sees a 2017 sales decline of 2% on a currency-neutral basis. Kellogg shares are up 3% for the past year, while the S&P 500 index is up nearly 24% for the last 12 months.

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