Why Conagra Brands Stock Crushed It Today

Key Points

• The comestibles conglomerate unveiled its first quarter of fiscal 2026 results.

• It showed declines on the top and bottom lines, but the company is a slimmer entity these days.

• 10 stocks we like better than Conagra Brands ›

Food industry mainstay Conagra Brands (NYSE: CAG) reported its fiscal first quarter of 2026 results early Wednesday morning, and the market found them tasty indeed. Investors rewarded the company with a more than 5% boost in its share price, a figure that easily topped the 0.3% increase of the bellwether S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC).

A busy quarter for the company

This was despite the fact that Conagra's net sales actually decreased notably in the frame. That metric declined by almost 6% year over year to $2.63 billion, which management attributed mainly to the negative impact of merger and acquisition activity. Still, that tally was slightly higher than the average analyst estimate of $2.62 billion.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »

Image source: Getty Images.

The dynamic was similar for non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) adjusted net income. It fell by 25% to $189 million ($0.39 per share) for the period. Conagra chalked this up to factors such as that sales decrease, and the loss of profits from businesses it has sold. Nevertheless, that per-share figure topped the consensus pundit projection, which was $0.33.

Conagra has been quite the eager seller of assets lately. In June, it announced it had finalized its divestments of the storied Chef Boyardee canned pasta line (to Hometown Food), and the Van de Kamp's and Mrs. Paul's prepared comestibles brands to High Liner Foods.

Existing full-year guidance maintained

In its earnings release, Conagra also reiterated its guidance for the entirety of fiscal 2026. The company continues to expect a 1% decline to a 1% increase in organic net sales growth compared to 2025, and adjusted earnings per share ranging from $1.70 to $1.85.

Should you invest $1,000 in Conagra Brands right now?

Before you buy stock in Conagra Brands, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Conagra Brands wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $646,567!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,143,710!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 1,072% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 191% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of September 29, 2025

Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.