09:33 AM EDT, 06/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- General Mills' ( GIS ) sales fell in the fiscal fourth quarter amid lower volume and pricing headwinds as the Cheerios maker provided a weak full-year earnings outlook.

The packaged foods maker's adjusted earnings came in at $1.01 a share for the quarter ended May 26, down from $1.12 the year before, but ahead of the Capital IQ-polled consensus of $0.99. Sales slid 6% to $4.71 billion, trailing the Street's view for $4.86 billion. Volume and pricing mix were down 2 and 4 percentage points, respectively. The stock fell 5.5% in premarket activity.

Retail sales in North America fell 7% to $2.85 billion, weighed down by lower pound volume and unfavorable selling prices. North American foodservice sales rose 4% to $589 million, buoyed by robust growth on breads, cereal and frozen biscuits, according to the company.

Pet sales fell to $602.1 million from $655 million a year ago. International revenue slipped 10% to $667.5 million due to price declines and foreign-exchange headwinds, partially offset by higher pound volume.

"We delivered on our updated guidance in fiscal 2024 by pivoting our plans and enhancing our efficiency in response to a more challenging operating environment," Chief Executive Jeff Harmening said in a statement. "We drove improved volume performance in the second half of the year and generated industry-leading levels of holistic margin management cost savings."

For fiscal 2025, General Mills ( GIS ) expects adjusted EPS to be in a range of down 1% to up 1% in constant currency terms from the $4.52 a share delivered in the previous year. The Street is looking for normalized EPS of $4.73. Organic sales are set to be flat to a 1% increase versus the 6% decline in fiscal 2024.

General Mills ( GIS ) sees volume trends in its categories "gradually" improving as the year progresses, but category dollar growth is anticipated to be below its long-term projections. The company forecasts to generate cost savings of about 4% to 5% of cost of goods sold, which is expected to exceed the estimated input cost inflation of 3% to 4% of cost of goods sold.

"As we move into fiscal 2025, our top priority is to accelerate our organic net sales growth, and specifically our volume growth," according to Harmening. "We plan to drive another year of strong (holistic margin management) cost savings."

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