The Campbell's Company Innovation Push: Can New Products Lift Sales?

The existing cooking-oriented portfolio provides a base for this strategy. Products used in scratch or semi-scratch cooking across Campbell’s, Swanson and Pacific represent roughly half of the U.S. retail soup portfolio. This group grew approximately 3.4% fiscal year to date and 1.5% in the third quarter of fiscal 2026.

Innovation is also visible across premium brands. Rao’s total brand consumption increased 15% in the fiscal third quarter, while sauce rose 13%, benefiting from fundamentals that included innovation from its Creamy line. Products outside pasta sauce consumption grew 22% in the fiscal second quarter, while Campbell’s plans to continue investing in Rao’s pasta, soup and frozen offerings. Pacific and Rao’s ready-to-serve soups also posted consumption growth of 7% and 8%, respectively. 

In Snacks, Goldfish recently launched a Pokemon collaboration aimed at families with kids. Pepperidge Farm introduced limited-edition Maggie’s Apple Pie cookies, while Chessmen benefited from innovation and merchandising support. Together, these launches reflect Campbell’s focus on using targeted product innovation to create fresh consumer interest and support established snack brands.

Campbell's Zacks Rank & Share Price Performance

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have gained 2.6% over the past month, underperforming the industry and the S&P 500’s growth of 5.4% and 4.1%, respectively. However, CPB outperformed the broader Consumer Staples sector’s growth of 0.3% over the same period.

CPB Stock's Past Month Performance

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Is Campbell's a Value Play Stock?

Campbell's currently trades at a forward 12-month P/E ratio of 11.28, which is lower than the industry average of 15.23 and below the sector average of 17.13. This valuation positions the stock at a modest discount relative to both its direct peers and the broader consumer staples sector.

CPB P/E Ratio (Forward 12 Months)

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Stocks to Consider

Darling Ingredients Inc. DAR develops, produces and sells sustainable natural ingredients from edible and inedible bio-nutrients in North America, Europe, China, South America and internationally. At present, Darling Ingredients sports a Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. 

The consensus estimate for Darling Ingredients’ current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 12.8% and 926.5%, respectively, from the year-ago figures. DAR delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 38.9%, on average.

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. CHEF distributes specialty food and center-of-the-plate products in the United States, the Middle East and Canada. At present, CHEF flaunts a Zacks Rank #1. Chefs' Warehouse delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 30.4%, on average.

The consensus estimate for Chefs' Warehouse’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 10.6% and 24.7%, respectively, from the year-ago reported figures. 

US Foods Holding Corp. USFD engages in the marketing, sale and distribution of fresh, frozen and dry food and non-food products to foodservice customers in the United States. USFD currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). US Foods Holding delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 1.5%, on average.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for US Foods Holding’s current fiscal-year sales and earnings implies growth of 5.3% and 16.3%, respectively, from the year-ago figures.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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