Del Monte Earnings Go Stale, Stock Sours

Updated from 11:23 a.m. EDT.

Fruit and vegetable producer Fresh Del Monte Produce(FDP Quote) posted lower-than-expected first quarter profit, marred by weather conditions, weak melon prices and the strong U.S. dollar. The news sent shares tumbling 12% to $14.93 in afternoon trading.

The company earned $34.9 million for the quarter, or 55 cents a share, compared with $63.6 million, or $1.00 a share, a year earlier.

Excluding an impairment charge, it earned 56 cents a share. Analysts expected earnings of 84 cents.

Sales fell slightly to $879.7 million, from $894.9 million last year.

Severe weather in the banana- and pineapple-production areas in Costa Rica and in banana-production areas in Guatemala led to disruptions in operations, a significant decrease in fruit quality and higher production costs.

Worldwide banana pricing rose 7%, while melon pricing fell 19% hurt by an oversupply of melons in the market and the weak economy.

On Monday Jim Cramer said he was bearish on the stock.

Rival Chiquita Brands(CQB Quote) will report its first-quarter earnings on Thursday.