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Commodities: Pizza brands get 'tricked' in pre-Halloween trading

Investors got in a Halloween mood last week, but not in a good way, when all four pizza brands followed by this site got "tricked" with nothing but falling prices. There were some "treats" though for restaurateurs in falling commodity prices.

October 29, 2018

Investors were certainly in a Halloween mood last week, but not in a good way as all four publicly traded pizza brands followed by this website got "tricked" with nothing but falling prices. There were some "treats" though in trading values on pizza restaurant staples like cheese and auto fuel, which fell in price over the week just in time for that deluge of traffic most brands will get Wednesday night. 

Cheese

Barrels closed at $1.25, while 40-pound came in at $1.5150 at the close of the trading week, according to the USDA. The weekly average for barrels was down .0645 to $1.2345, while blocks fell .0750 to $1.4925. 

As far as production on the coasts, milk availability has grown in recent weeks and cheese production is generally stable to heavier, the USDA. said. In the Midwest, a number of cheese contacts have indicated that production is lighter and milk offers remain sparse. 

The association reports that demand has slipped across the nation. Although in some cases interest is steady, contacts suggest cheese markets are creating a wait-and-see, buyer-friendly market. 

Production is mixed, but most producers suggest that stocks are starting to build across the regions. Some producers are using the slower demand season in order to build holiday inventories.

Wheat

Compared to last week, cash bids for wheat were mixed, with export sales and shipments of wheat totaling 16.3 mb and 14.7 mb, respectively. As a result, last week came in as another bearish showing for the commodity with exports now down 22 percent from a year ago, according to the USDA.  

Wheat was from 28 1/4 cents lower to 5 cents higher, with Kansas City U.S. No. 1 Hard Red Winter, ordinary protein rail bid, down 28 1/4 cents, from $5.71 1/2-$5.86 1/2 per bushel. Kansas City U.S. No. 2 Soft Red winter rail bid was not quoted.  

St. Louis truck U.S. No. 2 Soft Red Winter terminal bid was 26 cents lower, from $4.47-$4.87 per bushel. Minneapolis and Duluth U.S. No. 1 Dark Northern Spring, 14.0 to 14.5 percent protein rail was 1/2 cent lower at $6.59 1/2 per bushel. Portland U.S. Soft White wheat rail was 8 cents lower to 5 cents higher, from $6.05-$6.17 per bushel.

Auto fuel

Though vehicle fuel prices are certainly not as low as they were last year at this time, the numbers are falling as we approach the end of October for just about all gas grades and E85, though diesel fuel is fetching higher prices from last month. 

The average price of a gallon of regular this morning, according to AAA,  was $2.82, down 6 cents from last month, but still 35 cents higher a gallon than this time last year. Higher grade fuels also have declined in price, though not as dramatically as regular unleaded gas. 

Diesel, meanwhile, has a mind of its own and has gained 7 cents a gallon in price since one month ago, and is a hefty 54 cents higher a gallon than last year when diesel drivers paid just $2.74 a gallon. Meanwhile, E85 drivers are paying $2.40 a gallon today, down 2 cents from the previous month, but up 30 cents higher than what they paid this time last year. 

Natural gas

Natural gas spot prices rose at most locations for the seven days ending Wednesday, Oct. 24, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Henry Hub spot prices rose from $3.31 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) to $3.36/MMBtu over the seven-day period. At the New York Mercantile Exchange, the November 2018 contract price fell 15 cents, from $3.320/MMBtu to $3.166/MMBtu Oct. 24.

Net injections to working gas totaled 58 billion cubic feet (Bcf) for the week ending Oct. 19. Working natural gas stocks are 3,095 Bcf, which is 16 percent lower than the year-ago level and 17 percent lower than the five-year (2013-17) average for the week.

The natural gas plant liquids composite price at Mont Belvieu, Texas, fell by 61 cents per MMBtu, averaging $8.61/MMBtu for the seven days ending Oct. 24. The price of natural gasoline, ethane, propane, butane, and isobutane fell, by 5, 6, 6, 10 and 10 percent, respectively.

According to Baker Hughes, for the seven days ending, Oct. 16, the natural gas rig count increased by one to 194. The number of oil-directed rigs rose by four to 873. The total rig count increased by four, and it now stands at 1,067.

Pizza company stocks

It was a truly dismal week for some of the largest publicly traded pizza stocks, with the brands tracked weekly by Pizza Marketplace all smarting at the start of trading this week from falling investor confidence in the previous seven days. For mega-brand Domino's, losses in overall stock value last week added up to $6.51, after the brand fell to $261.24 at the closing bell Friday. 

Pizza Hut parent Yum Brands, Inc. also dropped in value to $85.78 at the close Friday, down $3.62 from the previous week's close on the New York Stock Exchange. Meanwhile, on the NASDAQ, Papa John's Pizza took some steps back last week, closing down Friday at $51.18, off $1.26 from the previous week's close. Also on the NASDAQ, take-and-bake brand, Papa Murphy's closed down 29 cents Friday, at $4.44. 

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