HRL vs GIS Stock Comparison

Hormel Foods and General Mills Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
HRL Hormel Foods Corp /De/
$21.05 +5.7% 1M -11.4% 1Y
Market cap
$11.52B
P/E
33.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$12.15B
Div. yield
0.06%
Packaged Foods Consumer Staples
7 wins
GIS General Mills Inc
$34.36 -4.1% 1M -28.3% 1Y
Market cap
$18.09B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$18.30B
Div. yield
0.07%
Packaged Foods Consumer Staples
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Hormel Foods leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Hormel Foods 7, General Mills 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHRLGISLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $11.52B $18.09B GIS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 33.6x -20.2x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 15.0x 10.8x GIS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.7% -4.5% HRL
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.8% -4.9% HRL
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.5% -1.0% HRL
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 37.7x HRL
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.06% 0.07% GIS
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -11.4% -28.3% HRL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -12.9%/yr -11.3%/yr GIS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.0% 30.2% HRL
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 31/100 HRL

Percentile Scorecard

HRLGIS

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisHRLGIS
Valuation 66 #16 of 45 39 #28 of 45
Growth 27 #31 of 42 2 #41 of 42
Profitability 49 #21 of 40 44 #23 of 40
Financial Health 74 #13 of 47 17 #39 of 47
Shareholder Returns 30 #22 of 31 53 #15 of 31
Overall 49 31
  • HRL ranked among 48 companies in Branded Foods
  • GIS ranked among 48 companies in Branded Foods

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodHRLGISSPY
1 month +5.7%-4.1% -1.0%
3 months -16.8%-4.6% +2.9%
6 months -2.3%-1.7% +6.4%
Year to date -11.2%-26.1% +11.4%
1 year -11.4%-28.3% +13.1%
3 years -32.0%-46.0% +79.4%
3 years, per year -12.1%-18.6% +21.5%
5 years -49.9%-45.2% +67.7%
5 years, per year -12.9%-11.3% +10.9%
10 years -44.2%-43.4% +255.2%
10 years, per year -5.7%-5.5% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureHRLGISSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.0%30.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 29.8%30.9% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.18-0.36 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.38-0.94 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -65.0%-65.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -20.6%-29.9% -2.5%
52-week high $26.51$49.01 $779.14
52-week low $19.20$31.66 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleHRLGIS
P/E now vs peer median 33.8xmedian 20.7x -20.6xmedian 20.7x
P/S now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 0.7x 1.0xmedian 0.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.6xmedian 12.4x 90.2xmedian 12.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 14.8xmedian 14.0x 11.9xmedian 14.0x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 1.5x 2.5xmedian 1.5x
PEG now vs peer median -1.25median 0.42 0.61median 0.42

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsHRLGIS
Revenue $12.15B $18.30B
Gross profit $1.90B $6.15B
Operating income $573.89M -$206.40M
Net income $342.71M -$893.70M
Free cash flow $780.87M $1.55B
EPS (diluted) $0.62 $-1.66
Cash & equivalents $839.64M $433.10M
Total debt $11.43B $55.73B
Shares (diluted) 551.07M 537.90M
Enterprise value $8.18B $15.74B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricHRLGIS
P/E 33.8x -20.6x
P/FCF 14.8x 11.9x
P/Operating cash flow 10.6x 8.9x
P/S 1.0x 1.0x
P/B 1.5x 2.5x
P/Tangible book 1.8x 24.4x
EV/EBITDA 12.6x 90.2x
EV/EBIT 23.6x -152.9x
EV/Revenue 1.1x 1.7x
EV/FCF 17.4x 20.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.4x 15.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.25 0.61

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHRLGIS
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.7% -4.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -0.1% -3.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -3.2% -6.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -3.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) -43.2% -104.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -21.1% -27.3%
Net income growth (1Y) -54.6% -130.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -26.9% -33.2%
EPS growth (1Y) -54.6% -130.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -27.0% -33.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 17.3% -23.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -0.3% -9.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 24.4% -26.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -8.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHRLGIS
Gross margin 15.7% 33.6%
EBITDA margin 8.9% 1.9%
Operating margin 4.7% -1.1%
Pretax margin 4.3% -3.8%
Net margin 2.8% -4.9%
FCF margin 6.4% 8.5%
Operating cash flow margin 9.0% 11.3%
Return on equity 4.3% -12.0%
Return on assets 2.6% -3.0%
Return on invested capital 3.5% -1.0%
Return on capital employed 5.0% -0.9%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.2x -2.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.2% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHRLGIS
Debt / assets 21.5% 45.0%
Debt / equity 0.4x 1.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 37.7x
Debt / FCF 3.7x 8.8x
Liabilities / assets 40.9% 75.3%
Equity / assets 59.1% 24.7%
Interest coverage 7.3x –
Current ratio 1.9x 0.7x
Quick ratio 0.9x 0.3x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.27 1.94

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHRLGIS
Dividend yield 5.5% 7.1%
Net buyback yield – –
Shareholder yield 5.5% 7.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) 187.0% -147.1%
Payout ratio (FCF) 82.1% 85.0%
Dividend growth (1Y) 1.9% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 3.1% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusHRLGIS
Forward P/E 15.0xFY2026 10.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.40FY2026 $3.19FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +2.2%FY2026 -10.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +17.9% -4.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $11.68BFY2026 $18.94BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -3.5%FY2026 +2.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.2% -11.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHRLGIS
Held by institutions 43.8% 87.2%
Institutions holding 622 1,331
Change in shares held, QoQ -4.0% +3.7%
Institutions buying 323 724
Institutions selling 230 427
Buyers to sellers 1.40 1.70

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

HRLGIS
HRL 1.00 0.45
GIS 0.45 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HRL and GIS?

General Mills (GIS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Hormel Foods (HRL) $11.52B, General Mills (GIS) $18.09B.

Which company is growing faster?

Hormel Foods (HRL) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Hormel Foods (HRL) +0.7%, General Mills (GIS) -4.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Hormel Foods (HRL) has the highest net margin (Hormel Foods (HRL) 2.8%, General Mills (GIS) -4.9%). On return on invested capital, Hormel Foods (HRL) leads (Hormel Foods (HRL) 3.5%, General Mills (GIS) -1.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Hormel Foods (HRL) returned the most: Hormel Foods (HRL) -11.4%, General Mills (GIS) -28.3%. Over five years, General Mills (GIS) compounded fastest (Hormel Foods (HRL) -12.9%/yr, General Mills (GIS) -11.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

General Mills (GIS) has the highest dividend yield: Hormel Foods (HRL) 0.06%, General Mills (GIS) 0.07%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Hormel Foods (HRL) has been the steadiest (Hormel Foods (HRL) 30.0%, General Mills (GIS) 30.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do HRL and GIS move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.45, a moderate positive relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, HRL and GIS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Hormel Foods (HRL) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.