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what it is
JBS processes the chicken, beef, pork, and packaged foods that end up in supermarkets and restaurant chains around the world.
how it gets paid
Last year Jbs N.V made $85.8B in revenue. U.S. was the main engine at $57.2B, or 59% of sales.
what just happened
The latest quarter showed $1.45 EPS on $63.1B of revenue, with 13.4% gross margin.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
7.9x trailing p/e — the market's not buying it — or you found a deal
5.3% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
8.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
$1.70 fy2026 eps est
xvary composite: 60/100 — average
What they do
JBS processes the chicken, beef, pork, and packaged foods that end up in supermarkets and restaurant chains around the world.
When you buy chicken, beef, or frozen food, there is a real chance JBS touched it before it hit your cart. It runs 250 production facilities across five continents and sells into 180 countries, which is scale (buying power → lower unit costs → more staying power when commodity prices get ugly). That matters because meat is a brutal business with a 3.1% net margin, so the company that buys, ships, and processes the most usually gets to keep playing.
How they make money
$85.8B
annual revenue
U.S.
$57.2B
Brazil
$25.2B
Australia and New Zealand
$8.7B
Europe
$5.8B
The products that matter
processes and sells beef
JBS USA Beef
$38.6B · 45% of revenue
It's the biggest segment at $38.6B of revenue, but it drove the pain: beef posted $565M of losses last year and still lost $95M in the latest quarter discussed here.
cycle-sensitive
processes and sells poultry
Pilgrim's Pride
$17.2B · 20% of revenue
This $17.2B business grew 5% last year, and U.S. poultry operating profit topped $500M in the third quarter. Right now, it's doing the heavy lifting.
profit engine
processes pork and other proteins
JBS USA Pork & Other
$17.2B · flat growth
Another $17.2B of revenue with flat growth. It matters because JBS needs more than one leg of the stool when beef margins disappear.
portfolio ballast
Key numbers
7.9x
trailing p/e
You are paying less than 8 times earnings for the world's largest food company, which tells you the market is pricing in a rough cycle.
5.3%
dividend yield
That is a large cash payout for a consumer staples name, and it pays you while you wait for margins to stabilize.
$19.8B
long-term debt
Debt matters more in a low-margin business because a bad commodity year still has to fund interest and repayments.
59%
u.s. sales mix
More than half the business comes from one market, so your upside and your policy risk are concentrated in the same place.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- long-term debt $19.8B (55% of capital)
- net profit margin 3.1% — keeps 3 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 20% — $0.20 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in JBS 3 years ago → it's now worth $20,990.
The index would have given you $13,920.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
The latest quarter showed $1.45 EPS on $63.1B of revenue, with 13.4% gross margin.
The quarterly picture was helped by strong poultry economics while beef remained under pressure. In the September period, company commentary said EPS matched the internal estimate at $0.52, so the bigger story is segment mix, not headline drama.
$63.1B
revenue
$1.45
eps
13.4%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 13.4% gross margin matters because in a business with a 3.1% net margin, a small cost shift changes everything.
-
we are keeping our earnings estimate for jbs foods' 2025 final quarter intact.
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the company is the largest global protein processor with operating facilities in fifteen countries.
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prominent regions aside from the united states (about 50% of revenues) include brazil, australia, and europe.category trends are somewhat different (see below) in the various markets, but have not changed markedly since the third quarter.
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september-period earnings came in at $0.52 per share, matching our estimate.the poultry operation's recent success and the beef operation's woes will likely converge a little in the new year.
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u.s. poultry operating profits exceeded $500 million in the third quarter, thanks to historically high profitability and pricing, but growing industry supply ought to pressure record results.meanwhile, after enduring $470 million of operating losses in the first half of 2025, the beef operations' operating losses narrowed to $95 million in the third quarter. cattle supply has been very restricted since 2024, but conditions ought to ease in coming months, given softer cattle futures of late.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is u.s. cattle scarcity crushing jbs usa beef margins.
med
Cattle stays tight for longer
JBS USA Beef is a $38.6B segment, and it lost $565M last year. If cattle supply stays restricted, the scale advantage does not matter much because bad spreads eat it alive.
Impact: beef remains the drag instead of becoming the recovery story the 7.9x multiple is hinting at.
med
Poultry profits normalize
U.S. poultry operating profit exceeded $500M in the third quarter, and the current note already says growing industry supply should pressure those record results. The hedge against beef weakness may not stay this strong.
Impact: the part of the business carrying results cools off before beef is ready to take over.
med
Customer concentration bites
The snapshot says 59% of revenue comes from top customers. In a low-margin business, concentrated buying power is not your friend.
Impact: pricing pressure shows up quickly when you only keep about 3 cents of each revenue dollar.
med
Labor and regulatory overhang lingers
A strike at a JBS-owned Swift Beef plant in Colorado shows how quickly disruption can hit operations. Add antitrust and political scrutiny, and you have an overhang that does not need to become catastrophic to matter.
Impact: more volatility, more cost pressure, and less room for error in a business already running on thin margins.
The combined risk picture is simple: a $38.6B beef segment already lost $565M last year, and the $500M+ poultry profit cushion is unlikely to stay at peak levels forever.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
margin
Beef losses versus poultry profits
This is the scoreboard that matters. Last year brought $565M of beef losses, while U.S. poultry posted more than $500M of operating profit in the third quarter alone.
earnings
Next earnings report
Scheduled for March 25, 2026. Analysts expect EPS of $0.40, but the real question is whether cattle pain keeps easing.
risk
Colorado labor disruption
The strike at a JBS-owned Swift Beef plant is small relative to the whole company, but it is a live reminder that thin-margin operations hate surprises.
trend
Cattle supply normalization
Management's recovery setup depends on easing cattle tightness. If that does not happen, the multiple is low for a reason.
Analyst rankings
risk profile
average
risk rank 3 — typical risk profile — neither especially safe nor risky.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 2 consecutive quarters — 173 buyers vs. 72 sellers in 3q2025. net buying for 2 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$20
$35
$15
current price
$28
target midpoint · +82% from current · 3-5yr high: $35 (+140% · 26% ann'l return)
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