What General Mills Q4 earnings say about the consumer

Shares of General Mills (GIS) are trading lower on Wednesday morning after the company posted its fourth quarter results. Quarterly sales declined 6.3% year over year to $4.71 billion, missing analyst expectations.

Yahoo Finance Anchor Brad Smith breaks down this latest development for General Mills and what it reveals about the state of the consumer.

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This post was written by Nicholas Jacobino

Video transcript

Let's stay in the food theme here.

Another big food company in focus.

Today, it's General Mills.

Investors seeing shares of the cereal maker fall today as its latest quarterly results reveal just how much consumers are pulling back on spending.

High grocery prices have remained a sticking point for consumers, even as inflation data shows that prices are easing now.

Consumer confidence.

It ticked lower in June as Americans said that elevated prices, particularly food and grocery prices, weighed on their views of the economy.

And this is weighing on companies like General Mills.

The maker of Cheerios saw lower volumes in its latest quarter, which means that grocery stores are ordering less inventory because consumers aren't buying as much.

General Mills Overall volumes fell 2% year over year in its latest quarter, with volumes in its biggest unit, North American Retail, down 6%.

Overall net sales were down 6%.

And still General Mills remains optimistic that consumers will indulge in snack foods again soon, saying in the earnings release that it quote expects volume trends in its categories will gradually improve in fiscal 2025