Kellogg Issues Warning as Profit Sags

Kellogg Co. said second-quarter earnings fell 17% to $143.2 million, or 35 cents a diluted share, from $171.6 million, or 41 cents, before a charge, a year ago, and warned of further declines as it faces fierce competition from other cereal makers. The results missed analysts’ estimates by 2 cents. Revenue fell slightly to $1.71 billion from $1.72 billion. Kellogg, the world’s largest cereal maker, said full-year earnings will fall as much as 15% to about $1.45 a share, less than the expected $1.77 a share, as it spends more on promotions to regain sales from rivals. Kellogg said it may cut some prices to fight lower-priced products, but it didn’t disclose details. Kellogg’s shares fell $3.19 to close at $33.25 on the NYSE.