Shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. plunged 11% in premarket trading Wednesday after the fresh fruits seller reported a surprise fourth-quarter loss and a surprise drop in revenue, amid declines in sales in the fresh and value-added business segment and a voluntary recall by its Mann Packing subsidiary. The net loss narrowed to $25.8 million, 54 cents a share, from a loss of $34.0 million, or 70 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding non-recurring items, the adjusted loss was 45 cents a share, compared with the FactSet consensus for earnings of 3 cents a share. Sales fell to $1.03 billion from $1.05 billion, while the FactSet consensus was for a rise to $1.07 billion. Separately, the company declared a quarterly dividend of 10 cents a share, payable March 27 to shareholders of record on March 4, up from 8 cents a share paid in December. The stock has rallied 8.8% over the past three months through Tuesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 8.0%.
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