Hormel Foods Corporation distributed the largest profit sharing amount ever to its employees nationwide today.

Wednesday, November 24, 1999

Hormel Foods Corporation distributed the largest profit sharing amount ever to its employees nationwide today.

One by one the various departments at the flagship Austin plant went to a cafeteria to receive their profit-sharing checks.

The first department was meat products employees, who heard Donnie Temperley, an industrial engineering superintendent, tell the workers, "You have certainly done your part with all the six- and seven-day work weeks to help the company realize such a successful year."

Floyd Albers, plant general manager, was also present to congratulate the workers and extend the company’s Thanksgiving holiday wishes.

Albers said profit-sharing was a "voluntary program of the company to recognize employees for their part in the success of the company this year."

In all, 1,600 hourly workers received profit-sharing checks today from Hormel Foods Corporation.

More than $9.9 million was distributed company-wide to eligible employees on Thanksgiving Day eve. Under the profit sharing distribution, each eligible employee, on the average, received $1,782.

This amounts to 2.61 extra base weekly paychecks for each eligible employee, representing an estimated extra 86 cents per hour for each hour of work, vacation and holidays during the year.

Joel W. Johnson, chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer, expressed pleasure at being able to share the company’s record year-end results with those who helped produce the excellent performance.

"It is with great satisfaction and an appreciation for the cumulative fine efforts of our people that we make this profit sharing distribution to eligible employees, who contributed so much to our success this past year," Johnson said.

"Profit sharing is not made available as part of any management or labor contract with our employees, but is strictly voluntary and a decision of the Hormel Foods board of directors," Johnson said.

The company has shared profits with its employees each year since 1938.

On Tuesday, Hormel Foods Corporation announced a record-breaking financial performance for the year ended Oct. 30 with net earnings, dollar sales and tonnage volume at all-time highs.

The Austin-based multinational marketer of consumer-branded meat and food products reported total earnings of $163,438,000, or $2.22 per share of common stock.

This represents an increase of 17.3 percent, or $24,147,000, from total reported earnings of $139,291,000, or $1.85 per share of common stock for fiscal 1998.

Total reported earnings exceeded operating earnings of $159,630,000, or $2.17 a share, because of a gain included in the first quarter of $3,808,000, or $.05 a share, for the sale of land by Campofrio Alimentacion, S.A., Madrid, Spain, a company in which Hormel Foods has a 21.4 percent ownership interest.

In fiscal 1998, total reported earnings reflected a one-time first quarter gain of $17,402,000, or $.23 a share, for the sale of the company’s Davenport (Iowa) gelatin/specialized proteins plant. Excluding this gain, the company reported operating earnings in fiscal 1998 of $121,889,000, or $1.62 per share. Thus, Hormel Foods operating groups generated earnings growth of 31.0 percent in fiscal 1999.