Sanfilippo Sales Fall After Prior-Quarter Gain

The Tip Desk · November 9, 2026 · 3 min read

Fiscal 2027 first-quarter net sales were $288.1 million as weighted average selling price per pound fell 3.6%.

John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc. (JBSS), the Elgin, Illinois processor and marketer of nut, dried-fruit and bar products, reported net sales of $288.1 million for the fiscal 2027 first quarter ended September 24, 2026, a $10.5 million, or 3.5%, decline that reversed the prior quarter’s 4.2% increase to $280.4 million.

The company said the sales decline was driven by a 3.6% decrease in weighted average selling price per pound, reversing a 2.8% price increase in the fiscal 2026 fourth quarter. It attributed the price drop primarily to a shift in product mix toward lower-priced items and lower selling prices for walnuts, trail and snack mix products and peanuts, mainly due to lower commodity acquisition costs, partly offset by higher selling prices for pecans and almonds.

Sales volume remained flat at 90.5 million pounds, unchanged from the year-earlier period. Chief Executive Officer Jasper B. Sanfilippo, Jr. said that marked a third consecutive quarter of stable or improving volume performance.

Gross profit fell 9.6% to $48.9 million, and gross margin declined to 17.0% of net sales from 18.1% in the prior year’s first quarter. The company said the decrease was primarily attributable to competitive pricing pressure and the timing of pricing actions for peanuts, bars and snack and trail mix products, with manufacturing expenses higher on freight, equipment repairs and maintenance and rent. The margin decline also reflected an unfavorable shift in product mix.

Diluted earnings were $1.11 a share, down 30.2% from $1.59 a year earlier. The company said last year’s exceptionally strong first-quarter diluted EPS provided a difficult comparison and that diluted EPS improved by more than 50% compared with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, when it was $0.71 a share. Net income was $13.2 million.

Channel volume told a mixed story. Consumer distribution volume fell 6.7%, reversing a 0.8% increase in the prior quarter, driven mainly by a 6.3% reduction in private brand sales volume from lower nut and trail mix volumes and, to a lesser extent, lower bar volumes. The company said nut and trail mix volume was hit by lower sales to several existing customers on category softness, reduced promotional activity and previously lost business, partly offset by new business at a grocery retailer and additional recipe nut volume at three existing customers. Bar sales were affected by softness in mainstream bars and migration to smaller pack sizes, partly offset by a new “better for you” bar launch and expanded bar business with an existing customer.

Commercial ingredients volume increased 3.7%, primarily from increased sales of peanut crushing stock to peanut oil processors, with modest Foodservice growth and lower Industrial sales. Contract manufacturing volume increased 41.3%, mainly from increased snack nut sales to a significant new customer added in the second quarter of the prior year, partly offset by non-repeat of a prior-year granola opportunity.

Total operating expenses increased $2.5 million versus the prior-year quarter and rose to 10.3% of net sales from 9.1%, on higher professional fees, freight, rent and compensation, partly offset by lower incentive compensation.

The weighted average cost per pound of raw nut and dried fruit input stock on hand decreased 20.6% year over year, primarily from higher on-hand quantities of peanuts purchased at lower costs, partly offset by higher pecan and almond acquisition costs.

Mr. Sanfilippo said the company expects to replace a significant portion of lost Consumer volume with incremental Contract Manufacturing volume, which will result in a less favorable sales mix, and that it is evaluating its cost structure to maximize efficiency.