Companies · MZTI
The Marzetti Company
AI-generated · informational only · not investment advice · verify before relying.
Latest analysis
Updated Nov 3, 2026
Marzetti Q1 FY2027: Cyclospora outbreak and freight cost spike drove a 30% operating income decline; underlying base business still running at low single-digit organic volume declines ex-outbreak.
The Marzetti Company's fiscal Q1 2027 results were dominated by two compounding shocks: a cyclospora outbreak concentrated in the Great Lakes — where Marzetti holds 3x the regional market share of most competitors — and a freight cost spike that delivered a 120 basis point gross margin headwind. Consolidated net sales declined to $481.5 million, operating income fell $17.8 million to $41.4 million, and adjusted EPS dropped 37.4% to $1.07. Even stripping out the cyclospora impact, the base business shows a persistent low single-digit organic volume decline, most acutely in the dressings category, which management is addressing through Project Alpha, leadership changes in Retail, and a wave of innovation launches including a new Chick-fil-A spicy sauce, a Tajin licensing collaboration, and Bachan's mayo expansion — all scheduled to ramp in Q2 and the second half.
Tone: cautiousRevenue
$1.9B
MZTI 10-K · FY 2026
Employees
3,500
Revenue growth YoY
+1.1%
Headquarters
Westerville, OH
Profile
MZTI 10-K Item 1 · Aug 25, 2026The Marzetti Company (formerly Lancaster Colony Corporation) is an Ohio-based manufacturer and marketer of specialty food products sold through retail and foodservice channels across the United States. The company operates two reportable segments — Retail and Foodservice — producing branded dressings, sauces, frozen breads, dips, and croutons alongside licensed products for major restaurant and retail accounts. Its strategic growth plan centers on accelerating base business growth, simplifying the supply chain, and expanding through retail licensing and acquisitions.
Read filing description ↓ Collapse description ↑
Our vision is to be The Better Food Company – the industry leader in creating great tasting food and cultivating deep and lasting relationships with customers and consumers – while fulfilling our corporate purpose To Nourish Growth With All That We Do. Our company goals are to bring delicious food to the table and to deliver top quartile financial performance and top quartile product quality, safety and customer satisfaction while attracting, retaining and rewarding top quartile people. To achieve these goals, we are focused on the three pillars of our strategic growth plan: Accelerate our base business growth; Simplify our supply chain to reduce our costs and grow our margins; and Expand our core business with our Retail licensing program and complementary mergers and acquisitions. Our financial results are presented as two reportable segments: Retail and Foodservice. The vast majority of the products we sell in the Retail segment are sold through sales personnel, food brokers and distributors in the United States. We have products typically marketed in the shelf-stable section of the grocery store, which include licensed sauces and dressings, along with our own branded salad dressings, sauces and croutons. Within the frozen food section of the grocery store, we sell yeast rolls and garlic breads. We also have placement of products in grocery produce departments through our refrigerated salad dressings, licensed dressings, vegetable dips and fruit dips. The majority of our Foodservice sales are products sold under private label to national chain restaurant accounts. We also manufacture and sell various branded Foodservice products to distributors. Over 95% of our products are sold in the United States. Foreign operations and export sales have not been significant in the past and are not expected to be significant in the future based upon existing operations.
Primary products
- Frozen garlic breads
- Frozen Parkerhouse style yeast rolls and dinner rolls
- Salad dressings
- Vegetable dips and fruit dips
- Shelf-stable salad dressings
- Japanese barbecue sauces and condiments
Business segments
End markets
Geographies
Named customers
Net sales attributed to Walmart Inc. ('Walmart') totaled 18%, 19% and 18% of consolidated net sales for 2026, 2025 and 2024, respectively. Total net sales attributed to Chick-fil-A, including the Retail sales resulting from the exclusive license agreement and the Foodservice sales, totaled 30%, 29% and 28% of consolidated net sales for 2026, 2025 and 2024, respectively.
“All of the markets in which we sell food products are highly competitive in the areas of price, quality and customer service. We face competition from a number of manufacturers of various sizes and capabilities.” Competitive position, as stated in the filing
Revenue commentary · FY 2026
Consolidated net sales for the year ended June 30, 2026 increased 1.1% to a new record of $1,929.8 million, driven by higher pricing, incremental sales from the Bachan's acquisition, and a temporary supply agreement, partially offset by lower Retail segment volumes.
The rest of MZTI is for subscribers
Analysis, signals, diligence answers, M&A activity and every quote, each citing the filing it came from.