Shares in Cal-Maine Foods slumped 12% in early deals, wiping $24m from the value of its chief executive's stake, after the egg giant's fourth-quarter earnings missed forecasts.

The Mississippi-based group, which has a share of nearly one-sixth of the US shelled egg market, reported earnings of $10.3m for the March-to-May period, down 72% year on year.

The figure, equivalent to $0.43 a share, fell short of analysts' forecasts of a $1-a-share result, according to a poll for Reuters, the news agency.

The group also missed on revenues, which dropped 9.3% to $213m, compared with Wall Street forecasts of $236m.

'Continuing to lag'

Fred Adams, Cal-Maine's chairman and chief executive said that earnings decline reflected lower egg prices and sales to food service industry which were "continuing to lag, reflecting the current economic environment".

Food prices, while down lower year on year, were still high by historical standards, and were expected to "remain relatively high and volatile", he added.

While Mr Adams said the group was expecting "good demand" in the year to next May, Cal-Maine stock slumped to $26.42 in opening trade on the Nasdaq market before recovering some ground to stand down $3.02 at $27.13 at 18:30 GMT.

At its low, the stock price valued Mr Adams' 31% stake at $173m, compared with nearly $198m at Friday's close.

Mr Adams has been chief executive of Cal-Maine since its foundation in 1969, and its chairman since 1982.