Shares of United Natural Foods ($UNFI) experienced a significant intraday increase on Tuesday following the release of their fiscal first-quarter results, which exceeded expectations in revenue gains. The grocery wholesaler revealed that revenue escalated to $7.87 billion for the three-month period ending November 2, a rise from $7.55 billion in the prior year, surpassing the average analyst estimate of $7.61 billion as tracked by FactSet.
Furthermore, adjusted earnings per share transitioned to a profit of $0.16, contrasting with a previous loss of $0.04 and surprising consensus expectations of a $0.02 loss. Shares of United Natural Foods surged by 23% in Tuesday's trading session. Revenue from the company's chains division experienced a 3.5% increase to $3.29 billion.
The supernatural segment reported a robust revenue growth of 14%, reaching $1.84 billion, while the independent retailers unit saw a slight decline of 2.4% to $1.85 billion. Overall, consolidated wholesale unit volumes grew by nearly 2%, benefiting from the acquisition of new business. "Our performance this quarter represents a solid start to fiscal 2025 and serves as an early proof point of our recently introduced multi-year strategic plan designed to bring value to both our customers and suppliers.
This strategy also aims to enhance our operational efficiency, improve free cash flow, and reduce net leverage," stated Chief Executive Sandy Douglas in a recent statement. United Natural Foods has also raised its fiscal 2025 sales forecast, now projecting revenues between $30.6 billion and $31 billion, an increase from a previously estimated range of $30.3 billion to $30.8 billion.
Additionally, management has doubled the lower end of its adjusted EPS forecast, which now stands between $0.40 and $0.80. Analysts surveyed by FactSet anticipate revenue and adjusted EPS of $30.72 billion and $0.55, respectively, for the current year. Moreover, on an unadjusted basis, United Natural Foods now expects to report a loss in the range of $3 million to $31 million. Positive volume trends have persisted into the second quarter, as Douglas mentioned during a conference call, referencing a preliminary FactSet transcript..