Pilgrim's Pride Quarterly Earnings Surge - US - Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NYSE: PPC) today reported net income rose 71% to $56.4 million, or $0.85 per share, for the second fiscal quarter ended April 2, 2005, an increase of $23.4 million, or $0.35 per share, when compared with net income of $33.0 million, or $0.50 per share, in the second quarter ended April 3, 2004.

The Company also reported net sales for the second quarter ended April 2, 2005 of $1.375 billion, a slight decrease when compared with net sales of $1.385 billion for the same period last year. Included in the net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2005 is a non-recurring gain of $6.5 million net of tax, or $0.10 per share associated with a litigation settlement.

For the six months ended April 2, 2005, the Company reported net income rose 142.6% to $104.9 million, or $1.58 per share, an increase of $61.7 million, or $0.85 per share, when compared with net income of $43.2 million, or $0.73 per share, for the six months ended April 3, 2004. The Company also reported net sales for the first six months of fiscal 2005 of $2.744 billion, an increase of $315 million, compared with net sales of $2.429 billion for the same period last year. Included in the net income for the first six months of fiscal 2005 is a non-recurring gain of $6.5 million net of tax, or $0.10 per share, associated with a litigation settlement.

"Our record second fiscal quarter and first six months' performance reflects solid poultry market trends coupled with the continued strong growth of our chicken business, lower average feed costs when compared to the prior year and excellent results from our Mexico operations," said O.B. Goolsby, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pilgrim's Pride.

"We continue our focus this year on product mix improvements more so than unit volume growth and the penetration of our prepared foods business into an ever-widening customer base throughout the foodservice, retail and quick service categories. We expect that poultry market prices will remain solid and feed costs will be considerably lower than in the prior fiscal year for the remainder of fiscal year 2005. These factors, combined with a strong export demand, give us reason to maintain our positive industry outlook for the rest of fiscal 2005."

Source: Pilgrims Pride - 25th April 2005