Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 0.800-0.900 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 0.990. The company issued revenue guidance of $5.2 billion-$5.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $5.2 billion.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on FLO shares. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Flowers Foods from $15.00 to $10.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Flowers Foods in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Flowers Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Flowers Foods currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $13.67.

Flowers Foods Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE FLO traded down $0.34 during trading on Thursday, hitting $11.35. 7,253,921 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,150,364. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $10.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.57. Flowers Foods has a 1 year low of $9.93 and a 1 year high of $20.23.

Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.06. Flowers Foods had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 3.78%.Flowers Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.800-0.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Flowers Foods will post 1.18 EPS for the current year.

Flowers Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.2475 dividend. This represents a $0.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. Flowers Foods’s payout ratio is currently 107.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ryals Mcmullian sold 209,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.87, for a total value of $2,271,830.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,022,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,113,270.60. This trade represents a 16.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 11.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Flowers Foods

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FLO. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Flowers Foods in the first quarter worth about $499,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Flowers Foods by 209.6% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 949,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,054,000 after purchasing an additional 642,942 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Flowers Foods by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 976,456 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,562,000 after purchasing an additional 65,258 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 150,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 14,476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Flowers Foods by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 744,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,157,000 after purchasing an additional 81,066 shares in the last quarter. 75.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc is one of the largest producers of packaged bakery foods in the United States, offering a variety of fresh bread, buns, rolls, snack cakes and tortillas. Headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia, the company operates an extensive network of bakeries and distribution centers that serve retail grocery chains, convenience stores, mass merchandisers and foodservice customers nationwide. Flowers Foods markets its products under well-known brands such as Nature’s Own, Wonder, Dave’s Killer Bread, Mrs.