Big two report contrasting results
The biggest grocery chain in the US claimed success in the nation’s grocery wars yesterday, as Kroger reported sales as being up sharply while second-placed Albertson’s experienced a profits slump.
For the quarter ended January 28, Kroger made a profit of $282.1 million (£162.3 million) compared with a loss a year earlier of $652.1 million (£375.3 million), when it was hit by charges for writing down the value of its Ralphs and Food 4 Less operations.
Sales rose to $14.7 billion (£8.5 billion) for the quarter from $13.7 billion (£7.9 billion) a year ago. For its full year, Kroger reported profits of $958 million (£551.5 million) on turnover of $60.6 billion (£34.9 billion). For 2004, Kroger reported a net loss of $104.2 million (£60 million) on sales of $56.4 billion (£32.5 billion).
Kroger has achieved ten consecutive quarters of like-for-like store sales growth. By contrast, rival Albertson’s - the second-largest supermarket chain in the US - said yesterday that its profits in the fourth quarter to February 2 plunged 17 per cent. Profits fell to $162 million (£93.2 million) from $194 million (£111.7 million) a year earlier. Quarterly sales fell 9 per cent to $10.23 billion (£5.88 billion).
Albertson’s chief financial officer Felicia Thornton blamed the numbers on Hurricane Katrina, changes to company accounting procedures and costs incurred in soliciting bids for the chain, which concluded with a $17.4 billion (£10 billion) deal led by Supervalu and CVS.
The purchase is expected to be completed by the middle of the year.
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