Kristoffer Inton

3 weeks ago | morningstar.com | Kristoffer Inton

Hormel Foods has long been on US shelves, with popular meat-centric brands like Jennie-O, Spam, Dinty Moore, and various Hormel-branded goods. These brands tend to hold number one or two share in their categories. To keep pace with evolving trends, Hormel has expanded its focus through acquisitions of non-meat protein brands like Skippy and Planters and branded meat products like Applegate. It has also entered ethnic and emerging food with Wholly Guacamole, Herdez, and Happy Little Plants.

1 month ago | morningstar.com | Kristoffer Inton

Green Thumb Industries cultivates and sells medicinal and recreational cannabis through wholesale and retail channels in the US. Unlike its Canadian peers, the firm is more vertically integrated, as it owns dispensaries in addition to the cultivation and processing of value-added products. It has a presence in 14 states through 20 production facilities, and 104 dispensaries, but lacks a moat as all cannabis producers do, in our view.

1 month ago | morningstar.com | Kristoffer Inton

Imperial Brands is at the end of a five-year strategic plan launched in 2021 that looked to position the firm as a fast follower in next-generation products while strengthening its share in its most important markets. This makes sense, given its relatively smaller size to peers like Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco, which leaves it less financial capacity to lead innovation.

1 month ago | morningstar.com | Kristoffer Inton

Private-label manufacturers can offer customers lower prices by minimizing the marketing and product spending that most packaged-food companies rely on to create strong brands. Secular trends create tailwinds for growth, but preferences for private label differ greatly by category. Since Steve Oakland took over as CEO in 2018, TreeHouse has slimmed its portfolio.

2 months ago | morningstar.ca | Kristoffer Inton |Inton Kristoffer

Why it matters: Given that Tilray remains in a growth stage, increasing sales is important for achieving scale, expanding profit margins, and reaching consistent positive free cash flow. Headwinds in cannabis and beverages are likely to weigh on top-line growth. With the Canadian cannabis market still challenging, Tilray has directed volume internationally and exited lower-profit categories. This helps near-term margins but sacrifices potential growth.