Campbell's Slashes Dividend 36% and Warns of Further Sales and Profit Declines in Fiscal 2027

Campbell's Co. reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results on September 3, posting a net loss and an 8% drop in net sales to $2.1 billion, as inflation, soaring commodity costs and weakness in its snacks business weighed heavily on the company. Adjusted EBIT fell 25% to $242 million and adjusted EPS dropped 37% to $0.39, with management noting that an extra week in the prior-year period accounted for roughly 7 to 8 percentage points of those declines. For the full fiscal year 2026, net sales fell 5% to $9.7 billion while reported EPS came in at $1.31.

Alongside the results, Campbell's cut its quarterly dividend by 36%, reducing it to $0.25 per share, and framed the move as a deliberate step to accelerate debt reduction and bring leverage down from 4.3 times to approximately 3 times. The company also unveiled a target of $500 million in cost savings by fiscal 2030, with more than $100 million expected from the new program in fiscal 2027 alone.

The company's fiscal 2027 guidance was the sharpest blow to investors. Campbell's forecast net sales declines of 2% to 4%, adjusted EBIT declines of 7% to 12%, and adjusted EPS of $1.65 to $1.80, a drop of 17% to 24% from the prior year. Management guided for raw-material and packaging inflation of 5% to 6% and double-digit logistics inflation, while expecting productivity gains above 4% and low-single-digit net pricing benefits to provide partial offsets. CEO Mick Beekhuizen warned that the first quarter of fiscal 2027 would be weaker than the full-year outlook, citing snacks softness and elevated inflation, with first-quarter adjusted EBIT margins expected around 10%. Shares of CPB fell approximately 6.8% on the news.