7 Companies That Upped 2Q Views

Results: FY 2009 EPS $3.98
Forecast: FY2009 EPS would exceed earlier projection of between $3.87 and $3.89

General Mills (GIS) announced earnings for fiscal 2009 of $3.98 a share last week, exceeding their previous guidance by 9 cents a share, as the company had predicted it would in June. Consumers may be cutting back on their spending, but food apparently isn’t one area they're skimping on. The company says U.S. retail sales have seen strong growth in the fiscal year ending May 31. The company also attributes the better-than-expected earnings to new products and consumer marketing efforts. Earnings for 2009 also reflect a gain from the sale of Pop Secret popcorn to Diamond Foods (DMND), which in late May also raised its full-year EPS estimates.

“Consumption’s probably going to fall as a percentage of GDP, which it needs to do, and the way it’s going to fall isn’t going to be that people stop eating,” says Dan Seiver, a finance professor at San Diego State University.

Companies like General Mills that rely on basic food products to drive their bottom line should hold up well even as consumer spending remains low, he says.