MAUMEE, Ohio -- Seaway Food Town here reported sales and earnings declines for the second quarter and 26 weeks ended Feb. 26.
.4 million and 5.9% for the half to $271.9 million, while same-store sales fell 3.8% for the quarter and 3.6% for the 26 weeks.
Earnings on a year-to-date basis were impacted by an extraordinary item of $256,000, taken in the first quarter, resulting from a change in tax accounting, plus two other onetime expenses: a $196,000 reserve for payment of union contract ratification bonuses and a $96,000 write-off of canceled real estate-related projects.
Operating cash flow for the quarter was $5.7 million, or 4.18% of sales, compared with $6.2 million, or 4.17% of sales, a year ago. For the 26-week period operating cash flow was $9.5 million, compared with $10.7 million a year ago.
W.D. Iott, chairman, said sales had exceeded the company's projections. "These results were accomplished with 64 stores in operation, two less supermarkets but one more Pharm deep-discount drug store than last year," he said.
Food Town expects to open a Pharm deep-discount drug store in Fostoria, Ohio, during the current quarter; later in the year it expects to open a prototype Food Town Plus store in Monroe, Mich., as well as a Pharm in Bucyrus, Ohio.
