Bank of America Merrill Lynch Reports on Diamond Foods

Bank of America Merrill Lynch commented on Diamond Foods DMND in a report released today. In the report, Bank of America Merrill Lynch was positive in its assessment of the company. Bank of America Merrill Lynch writes, "DMND reported 3Q11 results after the close. Highlights from the quarter include: 1) Sales of $223mn, were slightly ahead of our $220mn forecast due to a modest upside in international ($31mn versus our $30mn); 2) Operating profits were $24mn versus our $22mn forecast. Upside was mainly driven by a $1m favorable swing in SG&A and a modest favorable swing in advertising spend; 3) Tax rate of 33% was above our 31% forecast; 4) Management made a slight increase to FY11 EPS guidance to $2.48-$2.52 (vs. previous $2.45-$2.51); 5) Diamond announced that low single digit price increases will take effect during the latter part of 4Q in order to help offset input cost inflation in FY12." Bank of America Merrill Lynch currently has a Buy rating on Diamond Foods and a price objective of $85. Shares of Diamond Foods closed at $71.35 on Thursday, down 1.78% from the opening bell.