General Mills reported QQ1 2025 revenue of $4.8481 billion, down 5.7% year over year but up 2.9% quarter over quarter, reflecting ongoing top-line headwinds against a backdrop of pricing actions and portfolio discipline. The company posted a gross profit of $1.6888 billion with a gross margin of 34.83%, a slight year-over-year margin compression despite a modest QoQ improvement in profitability. Operating income reached $831.5 million, delivering an operating margin of 17.15% and a 2.4% year-over-year improvement, supported by cost controls and favorable product mix amid a softer overall demand environment. Net income stood at $579.9 million, or about 11.96% net margin, with EPS of $1.03, flat versus prior year on a per-share basis despite share repurchase activity. Free cash flow generated was $483.9 million, and operating cash flow was $624.2 million, underscoring durable cash generation in a mature, capital-intensive business model.
Capital allocation remained constructive: the company returned capital to shareholders via a $300 million share repurchase and paid $337.8 million in dividends, contributing to a net decrease in cash balance to $468.1 million by period-end. Leverage remained meaningful, with total debt of $13.32 billion and net debt of roughly $12.85 billion, resulting in a net debt to annualized EBITDA around the low-to-mid single digits (~3.3x when annualizing the quarterly EBITDA of $973.3 million). The balance sheet remains asset-heavy, with substantial goodwill and intangibles (Goodwill $14.78 billion; Intangibles $6.98 billion; total intangible-related assets around $21.7 billion), which has implications for future impairment risk and potential reassessment in a volatile commodity and FX environment.
Looking ahead, the company benefits from a diversified packaged foods portfolio and generally resilient consumer demand in essential categories; however, revenue contraction and significant leverage warrant careful monitoring of input costs, pricing effectiveness, and currency dynamics. The absence of formal QQ1 2025 forward guidance in the data requires investors to focus on the trajectory of margins, cash flow generation, and deleveraging progress as key signals of sustainable value creation.