Cal-Maine’s Shift Toward Premium Eggs Softens Hit from Falling Prices

Cal-Maine Foods’ shift toward premium eggs and prepared foods helped cushion the business from falling egg prices, which drove profit and sales sharply lower in the recent quarter.

The declines weren’t as steep as Wall Street expected, though, helping to send shares 6.1% higher, to $83.89, on Wednesday. The stock is up about 7% so far this year, despite having lost more than 8% of its value over the past 52 weeks.

The egg producer recently has been shifting its sales mix away from standard eggs in favor of specialty eggs, such as free-range and pasture-raised varieties, which carry higher margins and price tags.

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