Finances

McCormick & Company, Inc. (MKC) announced its third quarter results on Tuesday, October 7. Despite the company reporting better-than-expected quarterly revenue, shares dipped by over 1% following the earnings release.

Revenue came in at $1.72 billion for the third quarter, up 3% from the $1.68 billion reported in the same quarter last year. This exceeded analysts' estimates of $1.71 billion.

"Our third quarter results marked our fifth consecutive quarter of volume-led growth, reflecting our differentiation and the benefit of continued investments in our brands, expanded distribution, and innovation,” said McCormick & Company CEO, Brendan M. Foley. "As consumer trends evolve, demand for flavor remains strong. Our speed and agility in executing proven growth strategies enable us to capture the demand for flavor and value across all occasions and channels.”

For the quarter, the company reported net income of $225.5 million or $0.84 per adjusted share. This is up from net income of $223.1 million or $0.83 per adjusted share the prior year.

The Maryland-based spice company reported organic sales increased by 2%, driven by volume and product mix. Consumer segment net sales increased by 4% compared to the prior year to $973 million. The company’s Flavor Solutions segment saw a year-over-year increase of 1% in sales to $752 million. The company lowered its fiscal 2025 outlook and expects earnings per share in the range of $2.95 to $3.00 and net sales growth ranging between 0% to 2%.

McCormick & Company, Inc. (MKC) shares ended the week at $66.66, down 3.5% for the week.

Delta Air Lines Reports Quarterly Earnings

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) reported third quarter earnings on Thursday, October 9. The Atlanta-based airline company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue, causing its stock to rise approximately 4% after the release of the report.

The company posted revenues of $15.20 billion for the quarter that ended September 2025. This is up 4% from $14.59 billion in revenue during the third quarter of 2024 and exceeded analysts’ estimates of $15.06 billion.

“We delivered September quarter results at the top end of our expectations on a combination of strong execution and improving fundamentals," said Delta CEO, Ed Bastian. "Momentum is continuing into the final stretch of our Centennial year, positioning us to deliver strong December quarter earnings. Looking to 2026, Delta is well positioned to deliver top-line growth, margin expansion and earnings improvement consistent with our long-term financial framework."

Delta reported net income of $1.12 billion or $1.71 per adjusted share. This was up from net income of $971 million or $1.50 per adjusted share in the same quarter last year.

Delta Air Lines’ third quarter earnings highlighted increased passenger revenue in the United States. Domestic travel revenue increased by 5% to $9.1 billion and Pacific travel rose 3% to $667 million during the quarter. Atlantic passenger revenue fell 2% to $3.0 billion, while Latin America travel also decreased 3% to $759 million. Delta’s total passenger revenue was $13.5 billion, up 3% from the prior year. The company updated its full-year fiscal 2025 guidance and expects adjusted earnings per share to be approximately $6.00.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) shares ended the week at $57.48, remaining relatively unchanged for the week.

PepsiCo Serves Up Earnings

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) released its third quarter earnings report on Thursday, October 9. After reporting increased quarterly revenue, the beverage and snack manufacturer’s shares increased more than 2%.

The company reported quarterly revenue of $23.94 billion, up from $23.32 billion in revenue during the same quarter last year. Quarterly revenue exceeded analysts’ estimates of $23.83 billion.

“Our reported net revenue growth accelerated and reflects the resilience of our international business, improved momentum within North America Beverages and the benefits of our portfolio reshaping actions,” said PepsiCo CEO, Ramon Laguarta. “As we look ahead to the balance of this year and beyond, our top priorities are to accelerate growth and aggressively optimize our cost structure.”

PepsiCo reported net income of $2.60 billion for the quarter or $1.90 per adjusted share. This was down from $2.93 billion or $2.13 per adjusted share in the same period a year ago.

The company’s PepsiCo Beverages North America segment reported $7.33 billion in revenue, up 2% from the year prior. The PepsiCo Food North America segment, which includes brands like Frito-Lay and Quaker Foods, generated revenue of $6.53 billion for the quarter, remaining relatively unchanged from one year ago. For fiscal 2025, the company expects total cash return to shareholders of about $8.6 billion, made up of $7.6 billion in dividends and $1.0 billion in share repurchases.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) shares ended the week at $150.08, up 5.7% for the week.

The Dow started the week of 10/6 at 46,776 and closed at 45,480 on 10/10. The S&P 500 started the week at 6,734 and closed at 6,553. The NASDAQ started the week at 22,894 and closed at 22,204.

U.S. Treasury yields rose early in the week as investors reacted to the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September meeting. Yields decreased sharply on Friday as investors digest the economic impact of the ongoing government shutdown.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve released the minutes from its September Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. At the meeting, policy makers agreed to lower the key federal funds rate between 4% to 4.25%. The minutes revealed the central bank was concerned about elevated inflation but decided to cut rates in reaction to a softening labor market. 

“In considering the outlook for monetary policy, almost all participants noted that, with the reduction in the target range for the federal funds rate at this meeting, the Committee was well positioned to respond in a timely way to potential economic developments,” the FOMC minutes stated. “Participants expressed a range of views about the degree to which the current stance of monetary policy was restrictive and about the likely future path of policy.”

The benchmark 10-year Treasury note yield opened the week of October 6 at 4.12% and traded as low as 4.11% on Thursday. The 30-year Treasury bond opened the week at 4.71% and traded as low as 4.69% on Thursday.

On Thursday, the U.S. government shutdown delayed economic data including the weekly unemployment claims report. Weekly unemployment claims are a key indicator for labor market trends, economic slowdown and a gauge for possible interest rate cuts. Analysts expected 230,000 jobless claims for the week ending October 4. In the absence of official numbers, private sector estimates have become substitute measurements until the shutdown ends. 

“A raft of alternative indicators of employment have leapt into the vacuum created by the pause on most official data releases,” said chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, Sam Tombs. “Unfortunately, they are much worse guides to the official payroll data than many long-standing survey measures.”

The 10-year Treasury note yield finished the week of 10/6 at 4.04%, while the 30-year Treasury note yield finished the week at 4.62%.

Freddie Mac released its latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey on Thursday, October 9. The survey showed mortgage rates decreasing slightly following two weeks of increases. 

This week, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.30%, down from last week’s average of 6.34%. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.32%.

The 15-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 5.53% this week, down from last week’s 5.55%. During the same week last year, the 15-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 5.41%.

“Mortgage rates decreased this week,” said Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist, Sam Khater. “Over the last few weeks, mortgage rates have settled in at their lowest level in about a year. There is growing evidence that homebuyers are digesting these lower rates and gradually are willing to move forward with buying a home, which is boosting purchase activity.”

Based on published national averages, the savings rate was 0.40% as of 9/15. The one-year CD averaged 1.70%.

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