Hormel Foods Corp (NYSE:HRL) will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday, February 23, 2012. The average analyst estimate is for profit of 48 cents per share, a decline of 12.7% from the company’s actual earnings for the year-ago quarter. The average estimate is the same as three months ago. Between one and three months ago, the average estimate moved up. It has dropped from 49 cents during the last month. Analysts are projecting profit to rise by 4.6% compared to last year’s $1.82.

The company is looking to top estimates for the third straight quarter. Last quarter, it reported net income of 43 cents per share against a mean estimate of profit of 42 cents, and the quarter before, the company exceeded forecasts by one cent with net income of 36 cents versus a mean estimate of profit of 35 cents. Analysts are projecting a rise of 5.7% in revenue from the year-earlier quarter to $2.03 billion.

Competitors to Watch: Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD), Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN), ZHONGPIN INC. (NASDAQ:HOGS), General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS), Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. (NYSE:PPC), Seaboard Corporation (AMEX:SEB),  J&J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF), Ralcorp Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:RAH), The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAIN), Kellogg Company (NYSE:K), ConAgra Foods, Inc. (NYSE:CAG), Inventure Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNAK), TreeHouse Foods Inc. (NYSE:THS), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP), and Golden Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLDC).

Safeway, Inc. (NYSE:SWY) will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday, February 23, 2012. The average analyst estimate is for profit of 64 cents per share, a rise of 3.2% from the company’s actual earnings for the year-ago quarter. During the past three months, the average estimate has moved down from 65 cents. Between one and three months ago, the average estimate moved down. It has been unchanged at 64 cents during the last month. Analysts are projecting profit to rise by 9.6% compared to last year’s $1.72.

Last quarter, the company beat estimates by 3 cents, coming in at net income of 38 cents a share versus the estimate of profit of 35 cents a share. It marked the fourth straight quarter of beating estimates. Analysts are projecting a rise of 5.3% in revenue from the year-earlier quarter to $13.48 billion.

Competitors to Watch: The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR), Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:WFM), SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU), Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:WINN), The Fresh Market Inc (NASDAQ:TFM), Arden Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDNA), The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (GAPTQ), Ingles Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:IMKTA), Ruddick Corporation (NYSE:RDK), and Weis Markets, Inc. (NYSE:WMK).

To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

Get Your FREE Special Report: 4 Things You Must Know About the US Economy Now!