Supermarket profit rises 8.8 percent

Tuesday, Aug. 31, 1999 | 11:27 a.m.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BOISE, Idaho -- Albertson's Inc., the No. 2 U.S. supermarket chain, today said fiscal second-quarter profit rose 8.8 percent before costs related to its recent $12.5 billion acquisition of American Stores Co.

After the acquisition costs, Albertson's had a loss of $228 million. The company, which expects to have further such costs over the next two years, said it's already seeing cost efficiencies from the merger with American Stores, which was completed on June 23.

Profit from operations rose to $236 million, or 56 cents a share, for the quarter ended July 29, from net income of $216.6 million, or 52 cents, a year earlier. Sales rose 4.9 percent to $9.38 billion from $8.95 billion.

archive