Seneca Stock Slips Post Q2 Earnings Despite Sales Growth, Debt Cuts Zacks Equity Research Mon, November 9, 2026 at 9:42 AM EST 4 min read SENEA +10.65% ^GSPC +2.13% Trade SENEA on Coinbase Trading disclosure Trading disclosure The above button links to Coinbase. Yahoo Finance is not a broker-dealer or investment adviser and does not offer securities or cryptocurrencies for sale or facilitate trading. Coinbase pays us for certain activity generated through this link. Prices displayed are informational.
Shares of Seneca Foods Corporation SENEA have lost 1.8% since the company reported earnings for the quarter ended Sept. 26, 2026, compared with the S&P 500 Index's 2.3% decline over the same period. Over the past month, the stock has declined 17.7%, underperforming the S&P 500's 6.3% decrease.
Seneca reported second-quarter fiscal 2027 net sales of $492.6 million, up 7.1% from $460 million in the year-ago quarter. Earnings per share declined 0.5% to $4.27 from $4.29, while net earnings decreased 1.7% to $29.2 million from $29.7 million.
Vegetable segment sales increased 8.9% to $459.9 million from $422.2 million, while Fruit and Snack segment sales declined 4.9% to $26.4 million from $27.8 million. Other revenues decreased 36.9% to $6.3 million from $10.1 million.
Vegetable segment pre-tax earnings increased to $44.2 million from $25.5 million, while Fruit and Snack segment pre-tax earnings declined to $1.2 million from $3.7 million.
Seneca attributed the quarterly revenue increase of $32.6 million primarily to higher selling prices and favorable product mix, which contributed $27.3 million. Higher sales volumes added another $5.3 million.
Canned vegetable revenues increased 3.7% to $391.2 million from $377.3 million, while frozen vegetable revenues rose 53.1% to $68.7 million from $44.9 million. The improvement reflected a shift from contract-packed frozen vegetables toward branded frozen products.
Fruit product revenues remained relatively stable at $22.8 million, while snack product revenues declined to $3.6 million from $4.9 million, primarily due to lower sales volumes.
Seneca Foods Corp. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Seneca Foods Corp. Quote
Gross margin contracted to 12.5% from 13.4% in the prior-year quarter. The decline primarily reflected a $7.2 million LIFO inventory charge, compared with a $7.7 million credit in the year-ago period.
Excluding LIFO effects, gross margin improved year over year.
Operating income declined 9.2% to $37.7 million from $41.5 million. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 15% to $23.6 million from $20.5 million, partly reflecting additional selling expenses associated with the Green Giant frozen business.
Net interest expense decreased 55.1% to $2.1 million from $4.7 million, benefiting from lower outstanding term-loan borrowings and a lower average interest rate.
Meanwhile, FIFO pre-tax earnings increased 47.4% to $45.7 million, reflecting stronger underlying performance after excluding LIFO adjustments.
Seneca reported operating cash flows of $81.1 million for the first six months of fiscal 2027, compared with $83 million in the prior-year period.
Inventories totaled $795.9 million as of Sept. 26, 2026, compared with $613.9 million as of March 31, 2026. Cash and cash equivalents were $10.7 million.
SENEA made voluntary term-loan prepayments totaling $100 million during the six-month period, including $50.0 million during the fiscal second quarter.
Capital expenditures totaled $34.7 million for the six-month period, compared with $18.8 million a year earlier.
Chief executive officer Paul Palmby highlighted mid-single-digit sales volume growth across most core businesses, despite contract-packing timing differences and challenges associated with Green Giant's supply chain and pricing adjustments.
Palmby indicated that seasonal crop production was progressing close to budget across most crops, positioning Seneca to meet customer requirements.Management also highlighted encouraging holiday promotional activity among retail partners, reflecting continued consumer demand.
Seneca did not provide specific earnings or revenue guidance for fiscal 2027.
However, management expressed confidence in crop availability and seasonal production conditions. SENEA expects its existing operations and liquidity sources to support cash requirements for at least the next 12 months.
Seneca finalized the purchase price for its previously acquired Green Giant U.S. frozen business during the first six months of fiscal 2027, without adjustments to the purchase price.
SENEA received $1.7 million in contingent consideration and incurred $0.2 million in acquisition-related transition service fees during the fiscal second quarter. These integration-related activities remain relevant to Seneca's operating expenses and product mix.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
