As the Q4 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the shelf-stable food industry, including SunOpta (NASDAQ: STKL) 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 mixed Q4. As a group, revenues were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 0.5% above.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady. On average, they are relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.

SunOpta (NASDAQ: STKL)

Committed to clean-label foods, SunOpta (NASDAQ: STKL) is a sustainability-focused food and beverage company specializing in the sourcing, processing, and packaging of organic products.

SunOpta reported revenues of $193.9 million, up 8.9% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but a significant miss of analysts’ gross margin estimates.

“We delivered another solid quarter led by double-digit volume growth reflecting broad strength across our portfolio,” said Brian Kocher, Chief Executive Officer of SunOpta.

The stock is down 24.1% since reporting and currently trades at $5.61.

Read our full report on SunOpta 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 happy with the results as the stock is up 10.3% since reporting. It currently trades at $183.61.

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 32.2% since the results and currently trades at $53.

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

J&J Snack Foods (NASDAQ: JJSF)

Best known for its SuperPretzel soft pretzels and ICEE frozen drinks, J&J Snack Foods (NASDAQ: JJSF) produces a range of snacks and beverages and distributes them primarily to supermarket and food service customers.

J&J Snack Foods reported revenues of $362.6 million, up 4.1% year on year. This number was in line with analysts’ expectations. Zooming out, it was a disappointing quarter as it logged a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 4.6% since reporting and currently trades at $138.99.

Read our full, actionable report on J&J Snack Foods here, it’s free.

General Mills (NYSE: GIS)

Best known for its portfolio of powerhouse breakfast cereal brands, General Mills (NYSE: GIS) is a packaged foods company that has also made a mark in cereals, baking products, and snacks.

General Mills reported revenues of $5.24 billion, up 2% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 2%. It was a very strong quarter as it also put up a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ gross margin estimates.

The stock is down 5.6% since reporting and currently trades at $62.20.

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

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