On November 19th Post Holdings (POST) reported results for the fourth quarter and fiscal 2020 ending September 30th.  Post Holdings operates Michael Foods, results of which are included in the Food Service segment of the company.

For the fourth quarter, Post Holdings generated net earnings of $57 million on revenue of $1,411 million with an EPS of $0.83.  For the corresponding fourth quarter of 2019, Post Holdings recorded a loss of $(61.1 million) on net sales of $1,443 million and an EPS of $(0.84).

The Food Service segment, comprising egg and potato products attained sales of $320.5 million, down 23 percent in comparison to the fourth quarter of 2019.  The reduction in sales was attributed to a corresponding 23 percent decline in volume. This was in large measure attributed to COVID-19 restrictions on restaurants that seriously impacted the Food service channel.  Egg volume declined 22.6 percent, slightly less than potato volume.  The Food Service segment lost $4.9 million compared to a positive contribution of $49.6 million in Q4 of 2019.  Contribution was negatively impacted by reduced volume and lower net pricing due to an unfavorable product mix and lower market pricing, compounded by price reductions to move excess and short-dated inventory.

For fiscal 2020, the Food Service segment attained sales of $1,362 million, 16 percent less than in fiscal 2019.  The segment generated a positive contribution of $25.6 million compared to $198 million in FY 2019.