Sysco Corporation (SYY) announced Q3 results on May 4th for the period ending March 27th, 2021.  Sysco can be regarded as a bellwether for food distribution.  This sector was severely impacted by COVID restrictions with closure of universities and institutions and restrictions on restaurants and QSRs. 

For the quarter, the company earned $114.8 million on sales of $11.8 billion with a diluted EPS of $0.22.  In commenting on results, Kevin Hourican, President and CEO of Sysco, stated “ A robust business recovery is now upon us.  We are seeing consistently improving demand trends from our customers in the U.S. and we are ready to execute in International as markets reopen.”  He added, “Sysco has made substantial progress against our transformation agenda as we simultaneously invest in growth and transform our company to better serve our customers.”

Highlights of the quarter included a 291 percent increase in operating income but with a 17.2 percent decrease in gross profit to $2.1 billion due to COVID-related factors.

Sysco has a market capitalization of $42.46 billion.  SYY has traded over the past 52 weeks in a range of $44.17 to $85.15 with a 50-day moving average of $80.78.

On a trailing 12-month basis, operating margin was 1.8 percent and profit margin -0.7 percent.  The Company generated a return on assets of 2.4 percent but a -16.7 percent return on equity.