Earnings results often indicate what direction a company will take in the months ahead. With Q4 behind us, let’s have a look at Post (NYSE: POST) and its peers.

As America industrialized and moved away from an agricultural economy, people faced more demands on their time. Packaged foods emerged as a solution offering convenience to the evolving American family, whether it be canned goods or snacks. Today, Americans seek brands that are high in quality, reliable, and reasonably priced. Furthermore, there's a growing emphasis on health-conscious and sustainable food options. Packaged food stocks are considered resilient investments. People always need to eat, so these companies can enjoy consistent demand as long as they stay on top of changing consumer preferences. The industry spans from multinational corporations to smaller specialized firms and is subject to food safety and labeling regulations.

The 21 shelf-stable food stocks we track reported a slower Q4. As a group, revenues were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 0.5% above.

While some shelf-stable food stocks have fared somewhat better than others, they have collectively declined. On average, share prices are down 3.7% since the latest earnings results.

Post (NYSE: POST)

Founded in 1895, Post (NYSE: POST) is a packaged food company known for its namesake breakfast cereal and healthier-for-you snacks.

Post reported revenues of $1.97 billion, flat year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a decent beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is up 5.3% since reporting and currently trades at $111.44.

Read our full report on Post here, it’s free.

Best Q4: Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ: LANC)

Known for its frozen garlic bread and Parkerhouse rolls, Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ: LANC) sells bread, dressing, and dips to the retail and food service channels.

Lancaster Colony reported revenues of $509.3 million, up 4.8% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 2.8%. The business had a very strong quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Lancaster Colony scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 4.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $174.17.

Is now the time to buy Lancaster Colony? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Lamb Weston (NYSE: LW)

Best known for its Grown in Idaho brand, Lamb Weston (NYSE: LW) produces and distributes potato products such as frozen french fries and mashed potatoes.

Lamb Weston reported revenues of $1.60 billion, down 7.6% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 4.3%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

Lamb Weston delivered the weakest full-year guidance update in the group. As expected, the stock is down 32.8% since the results and currently trades at $52.52.

Read our full analysis of Lamb Weston’s results here.

Utz (NYSE: UTZ)

Tracing its roots back to 1921 when Bill and Salie Utz began making potato chips in their kitchen, Utz Brands (NYSE: UTZ) offers salty snacks such as potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, and ready-to-eat popcorn, among others.

Utz reported revenues of $341 million, down 3.1% year on year. This number missed analysts’ expectations by 2.2%. More broadly, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also recorded a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ gross margin estimates.

The stock is up 3.3% since reporting and currently trades at $13.89.

Read our full, actionable report on Utz here, it’s free.

Mondelez (NASDAQ: MDLZ)

Founded as Nabisco in 1903, Mondelez (NASDAQ: MDLZ) is a packaged snacks powerhouse best known for its Oreo, Cadbury, Toblerone, Ritz, and Trident brands.

Mondelez reported revenues of $9.60 billion, up 3.1% year on year. This result met analysts’ expectations. Aside from that, it was a softer quarter as it produced a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 13.7% since reporting and currently trades at $63.82.

Read our full, actionable report on Mondelez here, it’s free.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 6 Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

Join Paid Stock Investor Research

Help us make StockStory more helpful to investors like yourself. Join our paid user research session and receive a $50 Amazon gift card for your opinions. Sign up here.