EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Supervalu Inc. said profits fell by nearly 23% to $31 million in its fiscal second quarter, in line with analysts’ expectations.
Supervalu Inc. said profits fell by nearly 23% to $31 million in its fiscal second quarter, in line with analysts’ expectations.
Supervalu said results reflect $1 million in costs related to two breaches of customer payment-card data at stores from Virginia to Illinois earlier this year. Breach-related costs are likely to rise, the company said.
Second quarter revenue was $4 billion, up 1.8% and slightly ahead of Wall Street projections. Same-store sales at its Save-A-Lot discount supermarket chain rose 6.5% in the quarter, while same-store sales at the company’s retail food division increased by 0.4%.
Save-A-Lot posted sales of $1.05 billion in the quarter, up from $972 million a year ago, the company said. The company has 1,332 Save-A-Lot stores.
Sales at its retail food stores were $1.10 billion, up from $1.07 billion a year earlier.
"The investments we have made at Save-A-Lot continue to drive sales, and our retail food stores recorded their third consecutive quarter of positive identical-store sales," said Sam Duncan, Supervalu’s president and chief executive officer.
Last year the company sold off some of its largest supermarket banners — Albertsons, Jewel-Osco, Acme Markets, Shaw’s/Star Market — and eliminated more than one-fifth of its corporate headquarters jobs to better focus on Save-A-Lot and smaller regional chains such as Cub Foods, Shop ’n Save and Hornbacher’s.
The company also operates a wholesale distribution business that supplies 1,807 independently operated stores nationwide with branded and private label merchandise.
