Investopedia: Hershey Seriously Outperforms

Financial reports from packaged food companies haven't been all that spectacular lately, as almost every company has had to raise prices to preserve margins and suffer the volume consequences. Hershey (NYSE:HSY) looks like a pretty big exception to that rule, as the company rode serious price leverage to a very strong first quarter 2012. That said, Hershey is not cheap and investors need to ask themselves how much good news is already within the wrapper.

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FinancialEdge: 7 Companies Facing Retiring CEOs

Change is an inevitable part of life, but it can be particularly disruptive when it comes to company leadership. With a new CEO comes a new set of priorities, a new way of doing things and a new perspective on what the company needs to do to remain competitive in its industry. Not all CEO transitions are traumatic or even transformative, but there is always that risk. While investors have had reason to expect a change in the CEO office at Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL) for some time, these other companies are likely to face transitions of their own in the not-so-distant future.
1. Berkshire Hathaway
It is difficult to find a more obvious example of a company that is not only facing the likelihood of a near-term CEO change, but also one that will fundamentally impact how the business operates. The current CEO and chairman, Warren Buffett, has shifted his position on succession a few times over the years, and currently it is expected that the investment functions that garner so much attention will likely be split among multiple people. Though Berkshire has an excellent roster of operating units, a change in leadership here is going to significantly alter how business is done. At present, Berkshire Hathaway can do things quickly and effectively in large part because Warren Buffett is Warren Buffett - and a handshake deal with him goes a long way with most people.


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http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0911/7-Companies-Facing-Retiring-CEOs.aspx#axzz1X2whDx73

Investopedia: ConAgra Still Not Very Appetizing

When it came to light a little while ago that ConAgra (NYSE:CAG) was interested in acquiring Ralcorp (NYSE:RAH) and really focusing on private label food, it made a lot of sense. With another quarter in the books, it is increasingly clear that they may be ConAgra's only real chance of competing - this company just cannot gain much traction in the supermarket and has done little to improve a portfolio of brands that lacks leaders. (For more on supermarket stock, check out Evaluating Grocery Store Stocks.)


A Weak Close to the Fiscal Year
ConAgra's press release boasts of "strong" comparable growth, but I have to wonder what definition of "strong" the company is using. Yes, revenue was up over 5% this quarter and that's not bad for a large food company. What ConAgra management is glossing over, though, is that sales in the year-ago period were down about 5%, so the comp was especially easy. In fact, sales in this quarter were still lower than in 2009, so just exactly how strong does ConAgra think their business is? It is worth noting, though, that this is the first positive comp after four straight negative quarters.

Looking further at the top line, the consumer business saw less than 1% growth as a modest boost from pricing was overwhelmed by a fall in volume. Commercial sales were much stronger, though, and climbed about 14%.


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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/ConAgra-Still-Not-Very-Appetizing-CAG-RAH-HNZ-TSN-CPB-GIS-K0624.aspx

Chocolate 2.0

Perhaps humanity has seen the first step towards a long-held dream. No, not a manned mission to Mars, a cure for cancer or a solution for world peace; those would pale in comparison to the promise of healthier, cheaper and tastier chocolate. 

Scientists from Mars (the chocolate company), the U.S. Department of Agriculture and IBM (NYSE:IBM) have announced that they successfully sequenced the cacao plant. Although this is merely the first step, it opens up the door to a lot of potential changes. Though there will no doubt be howls of protests about the grim spectre of "Franken-chocolate" ruining the candy aisle forever more, agricultural companies and chocolate producers could ultimately forge a more sustainable crop and a healthier, tastier end-user product. 


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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2010/Chocolate-2.0-IBM-HSY-NSRGY-TR-KFT0916.aspx