This is an increase of 7.5% compared to $942.3m for the same quarter previous year.
The increase in net sales for the quarter reflects growth driven primarily by strong unit volume gains from existing products in both consumer and pet products, and new product volume growth.
Net income for the third quarter was $59.4m or $0.29 per diluted share compared to $60.5m or $0.30 per diluted share for the previous year quarter.
For the third quarter, consumer products net sales were $544.4m, an increase of 6.9% over net sales of $509.3m in the prior year period. The increase in consumer products net sales was driven primarily by strong unit volume growth from existing products (primarily in vegetables and fruit).
New product volume, primarily from Fruit Chillers and No Salt Added vegetable products, also benefited the topline. These gains were partially offset by increased trade spend, the company said.
For the nine month period, net sales were $2.79bn, an increase of 8.4% compared to $2.57bn for the same period last year. The 8.4% increase in net sales was driven primarily by strong base unit volume gains across the portfolio.
Net income for the nine month period was $180.6m or $0.90 per diluted share compared to $100.8m or $0.51 per diluted share for the same period a year ago.
The company expects net sales and EPS for the fiscal 2010 fourth quarter to be less than the prior year, primarily due to the absence of the 53rd week. The absence of the extra week is expected to impact fourth quarter fiscal 2010 net sales by approximately 8% and also impact EPS.
The company now expects net sales growth to be at the lower end of its 4% to 6% target, primarily due to reduced expectations regarding sales of lower margin products.
The company is increasing its target for fiscal 2010 diluted EPS from continuing operations to $1.07 to $1.11, which includes a total of $0.11 related to refinancing activities. This compares to its previous EPS target of $0.93 to $0.97.
