Strong performance within the company’s foodservice business boosted overall earnings and sales at J&J Snack Foods Corp. in fiscal 2017.

Net income in the year ended Sept. 30 totaled $79,174,000, equal to $4.23 per share on the common stock, up 4% from $75,975,000, or $4.07 per share, in fiscal 2016. Net sales increased 9% to $1,084,224,000 from $992,781,000. Fiscal 2017 included 53 weeks, compared to 52 in fiscal 2016.

Gerald B. Shreiber, president and chief executive officer, said strength within the company’s food service business keyed growth during the fourth quarter and full year.

Gerald Shreiber, president and c.e.o. of J&J Snack Foods

“Foodservice, without the extra week and without Hill & Valley and Labriola sales, were up 11 percent for the quarter and 5 percent for the year,” Shreiber said during a Nov. 10 conference call with analysts. “Sales to foodservice customers increased 30 percent for the quarter and our sales increase of 19 percent without Hill & Valley and Labriola was due to increased sales of soft pretzels, which were up double digit, handhelds, which were up 81 percent, churros up 16 percent, bakery products up 20 percent, frozen juice bars and ices up 15 percent, and funnel cake up 33 percent.

“We had an exciting year in food service. For the year, food service sales were up 13 percent, and without Hill & Valley and Labriola were up 7 percent with increased sales of soft pretzel up 5 percent, churros up 10 percent, handhelds up 35 percent, bakery products and funnel cake up 7 percent and 4 percent, respectively.”

J&J Snack Foods' food service churro sales increased 10%.

Operating income in the foodservice unit totaled $81,208,000 in the year ended Sept. 30, up 6 percent from fiscal 2016.

In a July 25 conference call with analysts, Shreiber was peppered with questions about the performance of Rock Island, Ill.-based Hill & Valley, a maker of pre-baked cakes, cookies, pies, muffins and other desserts for retail in-store bakeries. Despite generating operating income that was significantly off from projections during the third quarter, Shreiber indicated then that it wasn’t panic time. In the fourth quarter, a turnaround did take place, with Hill & Valley generating a 3 percent operating margin.

During the Nov. 10 conference call, Shreiber updated analysts by describing Hill & Valley as “a nice complementary business to our other products.”

J&J Snack Foods acquired Labriola Baking Co. in August.

“The business itself is improving,” he said.

Another transaction drawing interest from analysts was J&J Snack Foods’ August acquisition of Labriola Baking Co., Alsip, Illinois, a producer of bread products and artisan soft pretzels. Labriola Baking was founded as a local Chicago-area bakery in 1993 and has grown into a national supplier of prebaked bread, rolls and soft pretzels for in-store bakery and food service channels.