General Mills reported lower profit and sales in its fiscal first quarter, as the company continues working to gain back business by cutting costs and launching new products.

The maker of Cheerios and Annie's macaroni and cheese on Wednesday posted a profit of $397 million, or 74 cents a share, for its quarter ended Aug. 30. That compares with a profit of $1.2 billion, or $2.22 a share, in last year's comparable period.

Stripping out certain one-time items, earnings came in at 75 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected adjusted earnings of 72 cents a share.

Net sales fell 2.8% to $4.39 billion, just ahead of Wall Street models for $4.35 billion. The company attributed the decline primarily to the sale of its U.S. yogurt business last year.

Sales across General Mill's North American retail segment were down 6.6%, at $2.45 billion. The decline was offset by a 4.5% increase in International sales, to $794.2 million. Sales across the company's North American pet business were flat.

On an organic basis, total sales were essentially flat from last year, the company said.

Chief Executive Jeff Harmening said General Mills continues to operate in a volatile environment. The company is still working to cut costs, as well as improve top-line trends with stronger product innovation and updated marketing strategies that highlight the issues that matter most to today's consumers, including ingredients such as protein and fiber.

Looking ahead, General Mills said it continues to expect category growth to be below its long-term historical growth rate due to a challenging consumer backdrop.

The company reaffirmed its outlook for adjusted earnings of $3 to $3.20 a share this year, compared with analyst views for $3.07 a share. Organic sales are projected to be in the range of down 1.5% to up 0.5%.