Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL) — Fundamental Analysis & Key Financial Ratios

Kaplio's reading: Hormel Foods Corporation

Updated on October 19, 2026 · accounts published on August 27, 2026

Reading of October 16, 2026: A reliable dividend payer whose margins and earnings have eroded sharply

Hormel Foods trades at a P/E of 32.4 over the last 12 months, 40 % above its ten-year median, after EPS fell 41 % year on year.

• Is Hormel Foods expensive or cheap? Hormel Foods trades at a P/E of 32.4, 44 % above its sector median and higher than 93 % of the last decade.
• How is the business doing? Operating margin over the last 12 months is 4.7 %, less than half the 10.8 % average of fiscal 2014-2025.
• How strong is the balance sheet? Net debt was a manageable 2.2× EBITDA in fiscal 2025, but the 5.7 % dividend took 132 % of earnings.
• Is it as stable as the sector promises? Hormel Foods passes 3 of 8 consumer staples tests; EPS shrank 3.9 % a year over fiscal 2015-2025.
• What to expect from the next earnings? Analysts expect EPS of $0.38 when Hormel Foods reports on December 3, 2026; only 6 of 30 recommend buying.

Is Hormel Foods expensive or cheap?

Over the last 12 months Hormel Foods trades at a P/E of 32.4, against a ten-year median of 23.2 and a sector median of 22.6. The share price did not push the multiple up: the stock is down 12 % over the last 12 months and sits 23 % below its 52-week high of $26.51. Falling earnings did, with EPS down 41 % year on year. Cash flow gives a less stretched picture, with a free cash flow yield of 8.2 % and an EV/EBITDA of 15.2× over the last 12 months, so the high P/E mostly reflects depressed profits.

How is the business doing?

Revenue grew 1.6 % over the last 12 months, but EPS dropped 40.8 % and the operating margin shrank to 4.7 %, against a 12-year average of 10.8 %. Fiscal 2025 was already the weakest year of that span at 5.9 %, and the last 12 months are lower still. Returns on capital show the same erosion: ROIC of 3.2 % over the last 12 months sits 5.8 points below the sector median of 8.9 %, after clearing 10 % in five of the last ten fiscal years. Hormel Foods is selling about as much as before while keeping far less of each dollar.

How strong is the balance sheet?

Debt is the solid part. Over the last 12 months debt to equity is 0.36, the current ratio 1.88 and the Altman Z of 3.5 sits in the safe zone, while net debt of $4.06 per share equals about 20 % of the current price (fiscal 2025). The strain shows in the dividend. Hormel Foods has raised it for 11 consecutive fiscal years, yet in fiscal 2025 it paid out 132 % of earnings. Free cash flow covered 112 % of net income that year, which buys time, but a payout above earnings is hard to sustain unless profits recover.

Is it as stable as the sector promises?

Consumer staples are the boring businesses Buffett favours: investors want steady margins and a dividend that grows, because pricing power shows up in gross margin and stable profits are what fund the payout. Hormel Foods delivers the dividend side, with dividend growth of 9.3 % a year over ten fiscal years against a 6 % healthy mark, and free cash flow at 112 % of net income in fiscal 2025. The profit side fails: a gross margin of 15.6 % in fiscal 2025 versus the 35 % the sector treats as stable, ROE of 4.3 % against a 15 % bar, and EPS shrinking 3.9 % a year since 2015.

What to expect from the next earnings?

In the last report, on August 27, 2026, EPS came in at $0.37 against $0.35 expected, a 4.5 % beat, and Hormel Foods has topped EPS estimates in 5 of the last 8 quarters. Expectations are steady: the 2026 EPS consensus barely moved in the last 30 days, from $1.49 to $1.48 among six analysts, and the revenue consensus is also flat. Sentiment is lukewarm, with 17 of 30 analysts at hold and 7 at sell. The figure to watch on December 3 is the operating margin, since a recovery there is what would bring the P/E back toward its decade median.

How this was prepared: the data comes from companies' official filings, collected by a professional provider, and from Kaplio's analysis engine (trailing-12-month ratios, 10 years of history and sector medians computed across US-listed companies). The text is written from that data alone, every figure is checked against it before publication, and it is reviewed when the company reports results. This is not investment advice.