ConAgra Profit Falls 14% on Sale of Units

ConAgra Foods Inc. said quarterly earnings fell 14%, after it sold its fresh beef and pork operations as it shifts emphasis to branded food lines.

ConAgra, which makes Peter Pan peanut butter, Hunt’s ketchup and Parkay margarine, earned $194.9 million, or 37 cents a share, in the fiscal first quarter ended Aug. 24. The results were a penny shy of analysts’ average expectations.

Omaha-based ConAgra shares closed down 43 cents, or 1.9%, to $22.37 on the New York Stock Exchange.