The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how shelf-stable food stocks fared in Q4, starting with Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL).

As America industrialized and moved away from an agricultural economy, people faced more demands on their time. Packaged foods emerged as a solution offering convenience to the evolving American family, whether it be canned goods or snacks. Today, Americans seek brands that are high in quality, reliable, and reasonably priced. Furthermore, there's a growing emphasis on health-conscious and sustainable food options. Packaged food stocks are considered resilient investments. People always need to eat, so these companies can enjoy consistent demand as long as they stay on top of changing consumer preferences. The industry spans from multinational corporations to smaller specialized firms and is subject to food safety and labeling regulations.

The 17 shelf-stable food stocks we track reported a mixed Q4. As a group, revenues were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.

Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 14.1% since the latest earnings results.

Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL)

Best known for its SPAM brand, Hormel (NYSE: HRL) is a packaged foods company with products that span meat, poultry, shelf-stable foods, and spreads.

Hormel Foods reported revenues of $3.03 billion, up 1.3% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 1.5%. Overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a decent beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but a slight miss of analysts’ revenue estimates.

"We delivered solid first quarter fiscal 2026 results, with adjusted diluted earnings per share1 of $0.34, supported by our fifth consecutive quarter of organic net sales1 growth," said Jeff Ettinger, interim chief executive officer.

The stock is down 9.7% since reporting and currently trades at $22.86.

Is now the time to buy Hormel Foods? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q4: Hershey (NYSE: HSY)

Best known for its milk chocolate bar and Hershey's Kisses, Hershey (NYSE: HSY) is an iconic company known for its chocolate products.

Hershey reported revenues of $3.09 billion, up 7% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 3.8%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and full-year EPS guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations.

The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 4.5% since reporting. It currently trades at $215.12.

Is now the time to buy Hershey? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Campbell's (NASDAQ: CPB)

With its iconic canned soup as its cornerstone product, Campbell's (NASDAQ: CPB) is a packaged food company with an illustrious portfolio of brands.

Campbell's reported revenues of $2.56 billion, down 4.5% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 14.5% since the results and currently trades at $21.11.

Read our full analysis of Campbell’s results here.

BellRing Brands (NYSE: BRBR)

Spun out of Post Holdings in 2019, Bellring Brands (NYSE: BRBR) offers protein shakes, nutrition bars, and other products under the PowerBar, Premier Protein, and Dymatize brands.

BellRing Brands reported revenues of $537.3 million, flat year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 6.7%. It was a very strong quarter as it also put up an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates.

BellRing Brands achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat and highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 28.6% since reporting and currently trades at $17.41.

Read our full, actionable report on BellRing Brands here, it’s free.

Utz (NYSE: UTZ)

Tracing its roots back to 1921 when Bill and Salie Utz began making potato chips in their kitchen, Utz Brands (NYSE: UTZ) offers salty snacks such as potato chips, tortilla chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, and ready-to-eat popcorn, among others.

Utz reported revenues of $342.2 million, flat year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is down 31.7% since reporting and currently trades at $7.61.

Read our full, actionable report on Utz here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 5 Quality Compounder Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.