CINCINNATI -- Kroger Co. here said sales hit record levels for the third quarter ended Oct. 3.
llion for the year to date, while comparable-store sales, including expansions and relocations, increased 3.6% in the third quarter. The company did not release comparable-store sales for the year to date.
Net income for the quarter, excluding one-time expenses and an accounting change, rose 29% to $124.4 million, compared with $96.6 million a year ago. Net income for the 40 weeks increased 21% to $358 million, compared with $297 million last year.
Kroger said earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation rose 13.5% to $406.9 million for the period, compared with $358.5 million a year ago; and EBITD for the year-to-date, excluding one-time expenses incurred in the first half of 1998, rose 10% to $1.1 billion, compared with $1 billion for the year-ago period.
According to Joseph Pichler, Kroger's chairman and chief executive officer, "Consolidation of administrative functions, coordinated procurement and logistics investments have clearly helped us achieve significant economies of scale."