The world's second-largest food company, Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT), bellied up to the earnings buffet this morning to announce second-quarter results. The parent of such household brand names as Oscar Mayer, Nasbisco, and Post said that its profit rose nearly 4% to $707 million, or 44 cents per share. Excluding items, Kraft banked 50 cents per share, 3 pennies above analysts' expectations.

Quarterly sales rose 6.8% to $9.21 billion, trumping Wall Street's sales target of $8.97 billion. North American sales were 2% higher during the reporting period, with sales in the beverage unit improving by 4.3%.

According to MarketWatch, sales of new products, including new Crystal Light flavors and Nabisco 100-calorie snack packs, helped offset challenges from rising dairy costs and increased marketing expenses.

Dow Jones reports that Kraft officials now expect organic net revenue growth of at least 4% in 2007, a slight improvement from earlier estimates of 3% to 4%. Full-year earnings before items remain estimated in a range between $1.75 and $1.80 per share.

In early-morning trading, Kraft shares have gained about 1%. The stock is attempting to muscle back above its 80-week moving average, which KFT breached yesterday for the first time since April.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.