News in brief

Tyson to release 1Q earnings in meeting

Springdale-based Tyson Foods Inc. is expected to release its first-quarter earnings Monday morning before the market opens.

A consensus estimate of nine analysts predicts earnings per share for the first quarter for fiscal 2023 of $1.36 compared with $2.87 for the fourth quarter a year ago, according to Yahoo Finance. Revenue for the quarter is predicted to be $13.52 billion based on a consensus of nine analysts, up from $12.92 billion for the fourth quarter of 2021.

The company will host a conference call at 8 a.m. Monday on the company's investor relations website. An audio-only version of the call can be accessed by dialing (844) 890-1795 and asking to join the Tyson call. A telephone replay of the call will be available through March 8 at (877) 344-7529 with the access code 3077367.

Tyson shares closed at $64.31, down 82 cents or about 1% in trading Friday on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares have traded as low as $59.38 and as high as $100.72 over the past year.

-- John Magsam

Walmart hires new chief people officer

Walmart Inc. has hired a new head of its U.S. people division after "an extensive search."

Judy Werthauser will start her new job as executive vice president and chief people officer for Walmart U.S. on Monday. She succeeds Julie Murphy, who recently retired from Walmart after 37 years.

Donna Morris, chief people officer of Walmart Inc., said in an internal memo Friday that Werthauser "will lead the People strategy within Walmart U.S., focused on career growth and associate opportunity, prioritizing well-being, driving a culture of belonging and enhancing our digital ways of working."

Werthauser was previously the chief experience officer at Five Below. She has also held leadership roles at Domino's, Target Corp. and U.S. Bank.

In her new job, Werthauser will report to John Furner, chief executive officer of Walmart U.S.

The Bentonville-based retailer often sees executive changes around the end of its fiscal year on Jan. 31.

January 2022 saw the departure of Walmart Chief E-commerce Officer Casey Carl, Chief Customer Officer Janey Whiteside and Chief Merchandising Officer Scott McCall.

Walmart shares fell $1.91, or 1.3%, to close Friday at $141.71.

-- Serenah McKay

Arkansas Index falls by 11.65 to 858.02

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Friday at 858.02, down 11.65.

Shares of P.A.M. Transport Services Inc. fell 4.2% and ArcBest Corp. shares dropped 3.8%. Simmons First National Corp. shares rose 1.3% to lead the index Friday.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

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