Pilgrim's Pride Reports Strong Revenue Growth

3 May 2013 --- Pilgrim's Pride Corporation reported first quarter 2013 earnings results with net sales of $2.0 billion, Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization ("EBITDA") of $116.9 million and net income of $54.6 million, resulting in earnings per share of $0.21 for the quarter.

This compares to $1.9 billion in sales, EBITDA of $101.5 and Net Income of $39.2 million, with earnings per share of $0.18 in the first quarter of 2012.

"Every quarter we see that our strategy and execution is working effectively. We delivered better results year over year despite $141 million of increased feed ingredient costs. By focusing on creating value with our key customers, we have diversified our product mix, honed our execution and are seeing our portfolio of business become a more profitable model," stated Bill Lovette, Pilgrim's Chief Executive Officer.

"Our pursuit of operational excellence has resulted in an improved safety record, significantly better than the industry average. We are reducing our turnover and measuring quality at every level of the organization. Despite challenging environmental conditions, Mexico continues to outperform due to its effective business model and the versatility and value that chicken provides to consumers."

Mr. Lovette explained, "We made significant steps on our strategy to strengthen our company and our balance sheet. Even with as much improvement as we have demonstrated to date, we believe there is still opportunity to stretch towards our vision of being the best managed and most respected company in the industry."